On 13 August 2026, the EMERGE Mozambique Mini-Hackathon, hosted by Universidade Eduardo Mondlane (UEM), brought together young innovators to develop practical solutions addressing some of Mozambique’s key energy challenges, as part of the wider EMERGE Hackathon.

The Mozambique competition is part of the first phase of the EMERGE Hackathon, which includes local Mini-Hackathons across the project’s three pilot regions in Morocco, Mozambique and the Niger River region. These national activities serve as preselection events for the Final EMERGE Hackathon, which will take place in Maputo, Mozambique, on 30 October 2026.

More than 200 registrations to the national semi-finals

Interest in the Mozambique Hackathon was strong, with 212 registrations received during the application period from 22 July to 10 August 2026. Most applicants were undergraduate students, with participants representing a broad range of higher education institutions across Mozambique. Candidates came from 14 academic institutions, with Universidade Eduardo Mondlane accounting for the largest share, alongside participants from institutions including ISUTC, Universidade Joaquim Chissano, Universidade Pedagógica, Universidade Licungo, Universidade Púnguè and others.

Image 1: Mozambique Mini-Hackathon 2026 – Candidate profile and participation overview. Source: Universidade Eduardo Mondlane (UEM).

Following the initial evaluation process, eight teams progressed to the Mozambique semi-finals, where they further developed and presented their solutions. The competition ultimately selected two teams to advance to the Final EMERGE Hackathon. The Mozambique Mini-Hackathon focused on energy access, resilience and infrastructure gaps, reflecting the specific challenges identified within the EMERGE Mozambique pilot.

During the semi-final stage, teams addressed the sub-challenge “Off-Grid & Resilient Energy Systems.” Their rapid prototyping task was to build a simulation or spreadsheet model showing how an off-grid system could balance electricity supply and demand over a 24-hour period. Models incorporated variables such as solar and wind generation, battery capacity and demand profiles, while assessing outputs including energy balance and blackout risk.  A key element of the challenge was to move beyond energy efficiency alone and design systems capable of improving resilience under local conditions.

The teams were assessed against several criteria, including relevance and problem fit, innovation and differentiation, technical feasibility and prototype quality, local impact and inclusion, scalability and replicability, business model and sustainability, and pitch clarity and team capacity.

The Mozambique Mini-Hackathon is one of three local competitions designed to connect locally grounded innovation with the wider objectives of EMERGE.

Across the three pilot regions, teams are working on challenges adapted to their respective energy contexts. In Mozambique, the focus is on energy access, resilient infrastructure and off-grid solutions; the Morocco Mini-Hackathon addresses energy optimisation, smart systems and industrial and agricultural efficiency; while the Mali activity focuses on affordability, community-based solutions and digital inclusion in energy systems. The two finalist teams from Mozambique will join teams selected through the other pilot Mini-Hackathons for the Final EMERGE Hackathon on 30 October in Maputo. The final event will bring together six finalist teams from the three pilot regions to present their solutions before a central jury during the EMERGE General Assembly activities.

Image 2: Mozambique Mini-Hackathon 2026 – Participating academic institutions and qualification results. Source: Universidade Eduardo Mondlane (UEM).