Applications are open for the third Africa Young Innovators for Health Award, which is seeking artificial-intelligence solutions to improve access to family-planning information and services across Africa.

The award is being organised by Speak Up Africa and the Ouagadougou Partnership Coordination Unit. Young Africans aged 18 to 35 who live in an African country are eligible to apply through a civil society or private sector organisation.

Applications close on 6 November 2026 at 23:59 GMT.

Eligibility and finalist programme

Applicants must present a solution that responds to a clearly defined family-planning need, uses artificial intelligence in a meaningful way and has progressed to at least the prototype or minimum viable product stage.

Eight finalists will be given the opportunity to travel to Conakry, Guinea, for an innovation hackathon. The finalist programme will include pitch preparation and rehearsals, mentorship clinics and bootcamps. The event information lists activities from 30 November to 3 December 2026 and also refers to a programme running from 1 to 3 December.

A jury will select four final winners. Two first-prize winners will each receive US$15,000, while two second-prize winners will each receive US$10,000.

Winners will also take part in a three-month mentorship programme and gain access to specialists in family planning, artificial intelligence and business development. Other benefits include media training and opportunities to present their work to potential partners and investors.

Focus on responsible technology

The award responds to barriers affecting young people in West and Central Africa, including misinformation, limited access to confidential and youth-friendly care, provider bias and restrictions connected to age or marital status.

According to the organisers, artificial intelligence could help healthcare providers, improve patient referrals and support the use of data in planning services. However, the competition will focus on solutions designed for African conditions, particularly areas with limited connectivity.

Submissions are expected to address data protection, safety, inclusion, bias, the reliability of results and human oversight.

Yacine Djibo, Executive Director of Speak Up Africa, said the award was created to help young African innovators turn promising ideas into practical solutions. She said this edition applies that objective to family planning while linking innovators with partners, decision-makers and investors.

Marie Ba, Director of the Ouagadougou Partnership Coordination Unit, said young people’s ideas and skills would be important to the partnership’s goal of helping 13 million people access and use modern contraceptive methods by 2030.

The Africa Young Innovators for Health Award was launched in 2021 with IFPMA. Its third edition is being delivered in partnership with the Ouagadougou Partnership Coordination Unit.