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OPENS DOORS ITU Digital World Awards 2021

The Awards

The ITU Digital World Awards are open to all exhibitors and sponsors present at ITU Digital World, whether within a National or Thematic Pavilion, as an Independent Stand or with an SME workstation.

The Awards programme consists of:

 
Global
SME Awards

for the most promising innovative solutions from startups and SMEs
in the following categories:

Connectivity
Smart cities, smart living

Global SME Awards
Smart cities, smart living

using digital tech innovatively to improve urban life and beyond in areas such as energy, transport, planning, food management, commerce and education.

Global SME Awards
Connectivity

innovative solutions to increasing universal access to the internet.

E-health
Digital finance

Global SME Awards
Digital finance

ICT-based initiatives focused on increasing and improving access to the economy for the banked and unbanked.

Global SME Awards
E-health

using technology to improve healthcare through remote diagnosis and treatment, care in the home, monitoring and prevention.

 

Global
Industry Awards

for the most promising innovative solutions from large entities, either individually or in partnerships

Government
Award

for the National Pavilion at ITU Digital World with three or more of the most promising innovative SMEs present at the event who have applied for the Global SME Awards

Host Country
SME Awards

for the best and most innovative SME or solution from ITU Digital World’s host country
Recognition of
Excellence
Certificate
for the best innovative exhibitor within each National Pavilion at ITU Digital World

Why enter the Awards?

 

Benefit from international visibility before, during and after the event

Engage with governments, policy-makers and regulators at the highest level

Take home the exclusive ITU Digital World Award Winner trophy and certificate
Win UN recognition as an innovative ICT4D solutions provider

Network with potential partners, customers and leads from public and private sectors, emerging and developed markets

Take part in the SME Programme of capacity building and skills workshops, business matchmaking and networking events

About the Awards

As the UN specialized agency for ICTs, with 193 Member States, over 700 private sector entities and 150 years of sector expertise, ITU understands the critical role of ICT solutions in accelerating social and economic development across emerging and developed markets alike. ICT-based applications, solutions and initiatives are uniquely powerful and effective in improving lives all around the world. The ITU Digital World Awards celebrate this innovation and creativity by:

Recognizing

the most promising and effective initiatives using ICTs innovatively for social good – whether created by startups, SMEs or large-scale industry players

Highlighting

best practices and the cross-fertilization of ideas for innovative socio-economic development

Providing

a platform to network, mobilize investment and
create new business opportunities for ICT solutions with social impact

ITU Telecom World Awards 2019 – Winners and Finalists

Congratulations to all the finalists and winners of the ITU Telecom World Awards 2019!
2019 Winners and finalists
Our 2019 Global SME Awards Jury
Our 2019 Global Industry Awards Jury
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Winning the Award will be reassuring to mobile operators we want to partner with and investors who sometimes doubt our capacity to find key partners to allow us to scale. This prize will also make us more credible when we go and talk to other UN organizations.
Simon Schwall, Co-founder and CEO, OKO Finance
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Participating in ITU is really great leverage for us to introduce our technology to a global market.
Soon Yoonju, Ripplebuds
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As an entrepreneur you often go down quite a lonely journey, so it’s really wonderful to be recognised for the work we are doing. It’s been a really great week, being able to showcase our ICT solution on an international stage has been very valuable.
Miguel da Costa, Uthini
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This week has been a whirlwind, literally buyers from all the world, decision-makers in ICT in a number of verticals. It’s been not only overwhelming, but very, very rewarding
Sabelo Sibanda, Co-founder, Tuse Applications
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The week has been fantastic, we have been able to interact with different stakeholders and potential partners, as well as other SMEs within the exhibition.
Tshepho Thlaku, CEO, Pulego
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It is a great honour for me, as small company with lots of potential. I saw a lot of companies like us here, we would like to come here every year if we have the chance, all the ICT system is here to cooperate with, and there are many ceremonies and festivals to have fun together, it is very good
Sujeong Park, Manager, iKoob
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It was really great chance to be here and introduce some services and content to other countries. We met many partners here from Africa and we`d like to come again to expand our business again.
Helen Lee, Director, Marvus
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This event is eye-opening to all of us. Our SMEs and all our colleagues will take the good ideas here and see how they can implement them at home, see what is happening elsewhere in the continent and beyond.
Prof. Américo F. Muchanga, Director General, INCM, Mozambique
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I am proud to be here to see the exciting innovations not only in the telecoms sector but also in other areas like fintech, ecommerce and 5G - the new era of technology here inspires me to do more and want to achieve more for society.
Iwan Kurniawan, CEO & Co-founder, Modalku, Global SME Excellence Award Winner, Indonesia
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The network and connections you can build at an event like this are invaluable, from a business perspective, from an investor perspective, from a networking perspective. There is so much synergy that we can definitely strengthen partnerships.
Matthias Brodner, Simplus Innovation, Global SME Award Best Business Model Winner, South Africa
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Being at the ITU conference has been extremely mind blowing for me, I have learnt so much in terms of SME programmes, technology and awareness of what other countries are doing, it has been a really great platform.
Temitope Awosika, MEDSAF, Global SME Award Greatest Social Impact Winner, Nigeria
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A small company like us doesn’t usually have the opportunity to come to this event, but by participating we can meet the right people, announce and advertise our technologies, which is very helpful for the growth of our business.
Hiroshi Tominaga, General Manager, Japan Battery Regeneration, Inc.
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Our jury

A distinguished jury of experts will select a shortlist of Global SME Awards applicants to pitch their solutions onsite at ITU Digital World. Winners in each category other than the Global SME Excellence Award will be selected from this shortlist and announced on the final day of the event. The winner of the Global SME Excellence Award will be chosen following live head-to-head pitches during the high-profile Awards Ceremony.

A second jury with experts in each vertical sector will select the winners of the Global Industry Awards based on social impact, innovative use of ICTs, business model, scalability & replicability, and environmental sustainability.

Award winners' success stories

OKO Finance
Purple Signs
Semse Apps
Vokacom
Stephen Ibaraki, Chairman, Managing General Partner REDDS Capital
Yellowbeast
Ologa
dbTrack
Pulego
Tuse Applications
Modalku, Indonesia
Ulala Lab
Japan Battery Regeneration
WASPAG, Ghana
Covenant University, Nigeria
Academic Bridge
Gnúbila
BRCK
Health Q2
JokkoSante
Anthemis
Intervale Management
Lekha Wireless