Empowering the next generation of young digital innovators
When Maya Fakhfakh was doing her medical training as a young doctor in Tunisia, she encountered a lot of patients who were suffering from late-stage cancer. It was a wake-up call for her.
“There are a lot of late-stage cancers that we can prevent,” she said.
That is why she launched CerviScaner, an AI-powered mobile app to transform cervical cancer screening analysis to help save lives across her home continent.
“I am really passionate about leveraging technology and especially the potential that artificial intelligence holds to revolutionise healthcare and make it more accessible, especially for vulnerable populations,” Maya said.
Her goal is to make the app more effective to reach more remote areas across Africa so that more women can be tested and more lives can be saved. That is why she applied for the Generation Connect Young Leaders Programme (GCYLP).
“I have enjoyed meeting and collaborating with other inspiring fellows and visionary leaders who are equally committed to harnessing technology to advance our communities” she said.
But hers is not the only youth-led project that is thriving thanks to the dedicated guidance, training, and financial support from BDT and Huawei through the GCYLP:
Shergaun Roserie from St Lucia is helping to bridge the digital divide in his community by providing youth with hands-on trainings in programming, robotics and digital skills.
Valarie Neema Waswa from Kenya is empowering rural women business owners with digital marketing skills to establish their online presence and grow their businesses.
Yasmine Abdu is developing an Al enabled digital platform to assess carbon footprint and sustainability of everyday household items in the United Kingdom. This allows consumers to make more eco-friendly shopping choices.
Roman Tolstosheyev has developed a Cyber Leakage Prevention system in Azerbaijan to prevent data breaches and unauthorized access to personal information.
Pork Viheng is leveraging a gamification model to create sustainable passive income opportunities for Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) in Cambodia.
What is the GCYLP?
GCYLP is an ITU Telecommunication Development Sector project in partnership with Huawei. Over a one-year period, 30 young innovators aged 18-28 years old receive monthly virtual mentoring sessions, guidance, and USD 5,000 seed funding to help them implement creative and innovative community projects which address digital challenges and foster sustainable development.
“The GCYLP fellowship is a unique opportunity for young people to turn their digital development ideas into real, concrete, and impactful projects. I thank Huawei for their collaboration to empower the next generation of young digital innovators,” said Dr Cosmas Luckyson Zavazava, Director, ITU Telecommunication Development Bureau (BDT).
In 2024, the fellows attended a Development Week at ITU Headquarters in Geneva and Huawei-Sunrise Innovation Lab in Zurich where they received hands-on training on leadership, innovation, and project management.
Nearly 7000 applications from 185 countries were received for the second cohort of the GCYLP fellows. The selected fellows will be announced by June 2025. The GCYLP Development Week will take place from 14-18 July 2025.
This is an ITU Development #DigitalImpactUnlocked story
About the project
Project number: 7GLO23132
Project title: Generation Connect Young Leadership Programme
Description: The Generation Connect Young Leadership Programme in partnership with Huawei is a one-year leadership project for young visionaries (aged 18-28) to be supported by ITU and Huawei leaders. This project will be delivered three (3) times over a three-year (3) consecutive period.
The project aims to support young leaders (fellows) who propose creative, far-reaching, innovative, and feasible community-driven projects aimed at creating a more inclusive and empowered digital future. The project is designed to particularly support those in vulnerable situations in line with the global commitments of equal and equitable digital inclusion for all. The criteria to select young fellows for this project will include considerations relevant to regional, educational, socio-economic backgrounds, geography, and gender. To support the selected fellows’ efforts during this journey, ITU and Huawei will ensure that the young fellows receive guidance, training, and the necessary funds to enable them to develop and successfully implement their own digital development initiatives.
The Generation Connect x Huawei Young Leaders project will be funded by Huawei and implemented by ITU, with support from Huawei. The overall project workplan is to empower three (3) cohorts of young fellows, over a three-year (3) consecutive period. This project objective is in line with ITU’s resolutions on digital inclusion, regional initiatives on youth, and the ITU Youth Strategy.
Visit the project page for more details.