Ndengera: second place at the RISA innovation challenge

On 18 December 2024 our team took second place at the Gender and Family Innovation Challenge, organised by RISA (the Rwanda Information Society Authority), with a project called Ndengera. The prize was 1.5 million francs.

The problem

People facing gender-based violence often don't know where to turn, or are afraid to ask. The first step, reaching out, is the hardest one.

What Ndengera does

Ndengera is a chatbot that supports anyone facing gender-based violence. A person can talk to it in Kinyarwanda or English, get support and guidance, and, when the situation needs it, be escalated to the right services, such as the police and the Isange One Stop Centre.

A chatbot is available at any hour, doesn't judge, and can be the first conversation for someone who isn't ready to speak to a person yet. Escalation is designed so that conversation can lead to real help.

The team

I built Ndengera with TURIKUMWENIMANA Daniel, ISHIMWE Lea and UWINDATWA Marie Victoire, under the guidance of NIYONSHUTI Yves, one of the lecturers at RP Tumba College experienced in AI.

What I took from it

Technology for sensitive situations needs extra care. A system people turn to in a crisis has to be private, respectful and safe by design.

Know when a machine should hand over. The most important feature of Ndengera is escalation. A chatbot can support, but some situations need the police or the Isange One Stop Centre.

Language decides who you reach. Supporting Kinyarwanda as well as English meant Ndengera could help people who would never use an English-only tool.