Tamale: Students of the Engineering Department of the Tamale Technical University (TaTU) have developed new 'smart-litter bins' that reward users with cryptocurrency for dumping refuse in them. The smart litter bins utilize Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology to identify users and reward them with a token on a secured website managed by the students.
According to Ghana Web, the students showcased the smart litter bins for the first time during the launch of the Africa Science Week in Tamale. The event was organized by the African Institute for Mathematical Sciences (AIMS) Network, a pan-African network dedicated to postgraduate training, research, and public engagement in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM).
The innovation was among several others, including Smart Fire Detectors and Modernized Building Blocks, displayed by the Engineering Department at the Africa Science Week in Tamale. Ibrahim Maltiti Mohammed, one of the students, stated that the idea is to encourage people to use litter bins, which would help reduce flooding caused by choked gutters and drainage.
Director of AIMS Industry Initiative and Future of Science Forum, Dr. Charles Lebon Mberi Kimpolo, emphasized the importance of community-level scientific conversations, stating that 'Africa Science Week exists because we believe the most powerful scientific conversations happen not only inside research institutions but in the communities where science must ultimately make a difference.'
The second edition of the Africa Science Week was launched simultaneously across Africa. The AIMS Network Africa Science Week (ASW) 2026, a continent-wide public science engagement, is scheduled to run from 14 to 30 May 2026. In Ghana, the Science Week will be celebrated in Tamale in the Northern Region by AIMS Network's implementing partner, Parite Ethical AI Labs, an organization advocating for the study of Artificial Intelligence among school-going children in Ghana.