A TOTAL of 14,766 pupils and 2,394 teachers from various schools in the country have been equipped with skills and methods of innovating projects that provide solutions to challenges in the society.

The groups were equipped with the techniques through science outreach programmes conducted by Young Scientists Tanzania (YST).

Dr Gozbert Kamugisha, YST Co-founder said this in Dar es Salaam recently when addressing journalists on preparations for this year’s YST competition scheduled for September.

He said that pupils who have been trained and directly participated in the YST exhibitions since 2012 are 3,085 and teachers are 1,489.

He added that participation of girls in the science programme also increased from 39 percent in 2012 to 44 percent in 2023.

Kamugisha said that the level of participation is set to increase in this year as 391 teachers have been trained and 732 pupils are currently receiving training on scientific methodologies.

He said a record number of 1,042 project applications have been received this year compared to 979 applications received last year.

He said for the past 13 years, 45 pupils have been awarded university scholarships to study science and technological innovation.

“I would like to thank the sponsors of the project which has contributed to significantly changing pupils’ culture of loving science subjects,” he said.

Apart from pursuing their university studies, some of the pupils have improved their innovations to commercialization level, he said.

Dr Kamugisha named some of the innovations as the use of mobile networks for fire alert systems, Mbigiri salts as animal feeds and the Kivumbasi plant for improving bee keeping.

According to him, the projects are a wide range of categories but some of them focus on issues related to climate change, energy and food production.

Others are food safety, technologies for shaping behaviours of drivers to improve road safety, curbing carbon emissions, tackling misinformation and food safety in schools.

He said that after completion, 55 best projects will be exhibited at the YST 2024 national exhibition scheduled for September in Dar es Salaam.

Caren Rowland, Karimjee Jivanjee Foundation (KJF) executive officer, said that the strategic collaboration between the foundation and YST was aimed at bringing technological transformation.

She emphasized the importance of inculcating a culture of loving science subjects.