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Students from six high-schools from across the country presented their mobile applications at a function at Digicel’s Headquarters in Downtown Kingston, on Wednesday July 3. The mobile applications are part of an entrepreneurial and business development project dubbed I am the Change Expo: An Initiative to Develop Young Entrepreneurs held in May of this year. Participating schools were: Seaforth High, St. Thomas; Porus and Mile Gully High Schools both in Manchester; Green Pond High, St. James; Godfrey Stewart High, Westmoreland and McGrath High, St. Catherine. Launched in 2011, the Young Entrepreneur “I am the Change” Programme is a partnership between the Digicel Foundation, Mutual Building Societies Foundation, The Business Lab and Bakari Digital. Since its inception, the Digicel Foundation has invested approximately $10 million. During the course of the last year, students were charged with developing mobile applications that would assist with addressing issues within their schools and communities. These apps include; emergency notifications, study guides, job search mediums and the production of distribution channels. Samantha Chantrelle, Executive Director of the Digicel Foundation commended the efforts of the students saying, “The applications developed by these students can truly benefit this country. You can immediately see their passion, drive and enthusiasm. The Digicel Foundation is happy to have been able to contribute to the empowerment of these students and we will continue to promote creativity and innovation through the use of information communication technology.” Among the Representatives attending the display at Digicel were: Jamaica Crime Stop, Grace & Staff Community Development Foundation, Scotia Jamaica Foundation, Urban Development Corporation, and the Office of Social Entrepreneurship at the University of the West Indies. In response to the presentations, James Moss-Solomon, Founding Director of the Grace & Staff Community Development Foundation remarked, “This was an inspiring way to spend two hours.” About the Apps Mile Gully High School developed PARECOM. This application includes an interactive voice recorder that permits schools to share information with parents regarding activities and other school related events. TEENEDGE—the application developed by Godfrey Stewart High School, is aimed at assisting persons to locate full time, part-time and summer jobs, as well as work-study programmes and internships. Seaforth High School students developed an application called E-APP. It allows the user to alert family, friends and neighbours of an emergency quickly and silently. Students from Porus High School designed an application called SUBJECT 1. It is an educational tool that assists those preparing for CAPE and CXC examinations. CRIMESPOT, created by Green Pond High School students, will allow users the opportunity to send videos, photos and the location of crimes witnessed to the relevant authorities. McGrath High School designed an AGRO APP that will assist farmers in distributing their provisions to supermarkets, hoteliers and retailers.
