Shakheto: Sudanese Team at 2023 Hult Prize Challenge

In the midst of war in Sudan, a team of young Sudanese girls is determined to embark on a journey of victory at the prestigious 2023 Hult Prize Challenge.

Hult Prize is a foundation that allows young people to compete for ideas that solve the world’s most pressing issues through social entrepreneurship. Every year, one team receives USD1 mn in funding to make their idea a reality.

On 3 July 2022, Al Neelain University, a public university in Khartoum, won the Best Organising Programme in the world at the Hult Prize Programme of the Year Award in Nairobi, Kenya – up against at least 200,000 universities in 100 countries. That was the first time in the history of the Hult Prize that Africa has claimed a seat of honour for this award. 

Now, an all-girls Sudanese team named Shakheto from the University of Khartoum is taking on the challenge at the 2023 Hult Prize Challenge, even though they have been separated and displaced due to the ongoing war in Sudan.

This year, the theme is ‘Redesigning Fashion’ where the competition is to launch an innovative social venture in the clothing and fashion industry to make it more sustainable.

“The fashion industry is the world’s third-largest manufacturing sector, contributing USD2.4 tn to the global economy. Over 150 bn articles of clothing are produced each year. Fashion employs 300 mn people across its value chain—a sixth of the world’s workforce. However, the fashion industry is responsible for up to 8% of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions—more than all international flights and maritime shipping combined. It consumes 215 tn liters of water a year and accounts for 9% of the microplastics found in our oceans. For the majority of workers, conditions are dangerous and exploitative. Compensation is often below a livable wage, especially for women, who comprise 80% of the workforce”

Hult Prize

500 Words Magazine interviews Shakheto to learn more about the team, their commitment to their journey on the 2023 Hult Prize Challenge in midst of war, and their unwavering determination to succeed and make a change.

Tell us about Shakheto team and how did you all come together?

Our journey began nine months ago at the University of Khartoum. We are team consists of five girls: CEO Elaf Salah El Din; COO Lama Mahjoub; Director of Marketing, Fatima Al Zahraa; and Director of Finance, Alaa Ibrahim – all of them from the Faculty of Engineering, Khartoum University, Department of Electrical Engineering. With them is Asma Ibrahim, the product manager from the Department of Chemical Engineering and at the University of Khartoum – all of them first-year students.

What inspired the name, Shakheto?

We chose Amani Shakheto as our symbol because it was previously a symbol of Sudanese rule and beauty. It is a name with historical connotations and nationalism – and we have pride and love for our Sudan. In addition, it is a symbol of the strength and prudence of Sudanese women. It involves symbolism of femininity, and since the team consists of five girls, each of us is an embodiment of Shakheto – its idea and history.

How did you end up competing on the 2023 Hult Prize Competition?

We studied together in the same classes, and the same engineering subjects. We had common concerns about improving the environment by improving agriculture and getting rid of the waste that affect the environment, including textile waste. We had friendship and fellowship that expanded after we agreed to participate as a team in Hult Prize, and our relationship developed into a deep friendship and an authentic belief in each other. From that the story of the team began. The first meeting of the team members was during finals in November 2022. We went with Shakheto to several places such as the College of Agriculture, textile, agricultural and chemical engineering, and chemistry sciences to other universities such as the University of Sudan with its various departments. We communicated with various specialists from inside and outside the country.

We used to spend our time at the university until late hours, working on our project, thinking, discussing and debating. We could not count the number of times we faced rejection from various facilities or the number of times we were told that this idea was doomed to fail, but hope was always with us. 

Tell us about your journey on the Hult Prize so far.

We participated in the Hult Prize, the largest competition for entrepreneurs in the world. This year’s theme is: “Redesigning fashion to become more sustainable” as 88% of textile waste ends up in landfills. From that moment on, Shakheto decided to step up this dilemma. Our idea centred around clothes disposal and recycling, and this is where our story with the Hult Prize began. We started by participating in the university stage of the competition where we presented our idea twice to experts in the field, and we qualified in the first stage with a number of other teams. In the next stage, we were crowned with the title of the team representing the University of Khartoum. We were then be invited to participate in the semi-finals of the competition in Nairobi, Kenya.

Tell us about your project.

We are aiming to reduce the gap between waste and raw materials. Shakheto represents a movement to stabilise the rules of the recycling market in Sudan in parallel with the promotion of sustainable agriculture.

We are working on project talks about reversing the clothing industry by employing vermicomposting and bio-textile processes to quickly break down cellulose molecules and turn them into high-quality organic compost and a physical property enhancer for soil. It will be used to increase organic elements in the soil and assist the soil retain water, opening the path for  pure organic farming. We sell our organic compost product directly to farmers. We use waste from inorganic clothing (chemical and plastic waste) as a recyclable resource in new clothes by Sudanese designers.

How does the current war in Sudan have an impact on your journey at Hult Prize, if any?

On 14 April, we celebrated the news of our qualification for the semi-final stage. On 15 April, we woke up to the news of the outbreak of war in Sudan. Our plan to participate in competitions at the regional level in Nairobi, Kenya collapsed. In order to search for alternatives, we contacted the Hult Prize management about the possibility of participating online, and indeed we were directed to the Milan online summits. 

It was the most difficult stage for us to prepare for the summits as we lost communication with each other due to the continuous internet outages, as well as the fact that we were displaced to five different states inside and outside Sudan due to insecurity in the capital: Lama Mahjoub in Al Jazeera, Alaa Ibrahim in The Red Sea, Eilaf Salah-Eldeen in Shendi, Asma Ibrahim in Kassala, and Fatima Al Zahra Kamal in Cairo, Egypt. 

The members of the Shakheto team recorded extensive sacrifices. One of us had to travel long distances to go to a place where internet was available to achieve the responsibility of representing the team members on the global platform and continue representing Shakheto at a time when the rest could not, while the others were staying on the roof of the house, because there was no internet connection except there. We could hear the sound of bullets while performing tasks and following up on updates. One of us has to go out in the midst of the fighting to look for a laboratory in her new location to pick up where we left off. Another has been displaced, leaving behind her family to devote herself to working for the team. In the moments of evacuation, one of us was determined that the samples we worked on should be among the few things she takes with her from home. 

The seriousness and commitment we showed towards the idea is what enabled us to win the semi-final level of the Milan qualifiers. Therefore, we joined the best 24 teams out of 15,000 teams around the world to join the global business incubator in which training is provided to entrepreneurs.

What do you need to win?

Now, we need funding to cover the cost of traveling to the French capital, Paris to continue participating in the finals of the competition. In the name of Shakheto and in the name of Sudan, you can donate and support Shakheto via the following GoFundMe link: gofund.me/873921e8

Bankak’s account to donate inside Sudan:
Account Number: 3669785
Name: Alaa Ibrahim Hassan Alobaid

For more information, visit hultprize.org.

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Sudan’s Al Neelain University Wins Hult Prize