Hawanatu Sesay, Founder of IOT Labs SL, was the proud winner of the 2023 Women’s Prize of the Orange Social Venture Tech Queen competition.
Hawanatu told this medium that she is so excited to announce that she won the Orange Social Venture Prize Tech Queen for their IoT plant monitoring device. According to her, the award was a dream came true for her and a validation of all the hard work that she had put into her project.
The proud winner disclosed that their device, called the “IOT Plant Monitoring Device,” uses sensors to monitor soil moisture, light levels and temperature. She continued that the data is then sent to the cloud, where it can be used to optimize irrigation, fertilization and pest control which can help farmers save water, increase crop yields and reduce pesticide use.
Hawanatu disclosed that she developed the IOT Plant Monitoring Device in response to the challenges faced by farmers in her country, Sierra Leone further expressing the view that the country is a major producer of agricultural products, but is also prone to droughts and floods adding how such weather events can damage crops and lead to food shortages.
The IOT Plant Monitoring Device, she said, can also help farmers to mitigate those risks by providing them with real-time data on their crops’ needs.
Hawanatu further maintained that she is also passionate about making the IOT Plant Monitoring Device affordable to small-scale farmers, who are the backbone of the agricultural sector in Sierra Leone.
She said winning the Orange Social Venture Prize Tech Queen is a major milestone for her and the IOT Plant Monitoring Device project disclosing how the prize money will be used to scale up production of the device and to expand its reach to farmers in Sierra Leone.
The female prize winner also revealed how she is also planning to develop new features for the IOT Plant Monitoring Device which will help farmers to do intensive monitoring of their farms.
She expressed gratitude to Orange for the award, saying she is excited to continue working to make the IOT Plant Monitoring Device a reality further adding how she believes that the IOT Plant Monitoring Device has the potential to revolutionize agriculture and to help farmers in Sierra Leone and around the world to grow more food and make a better living.
Hawanatu further stated that she is excited to see what the future holds for their IOT plant monitoring device also expressing optimism that with the help of the support they have received from Orange Sierra Leone they are confident that using their technology will help to improve food security and sustainability in Sierra Leone and other developing countries.
“We are confident that our device will continue to make a positive impact on the world,” she stated adding how they are committed to making it accessible to farmers around the globe with the belief that it has the potential to revolutionize agriculture.
She also maintained that she is excited to see what the future holds for their device and is proud to be a part of the team that is making it happen.
Hawanatu ended by extending thanks and appreciation to Orange for the incredible award saying she is honoured to be a recipient of the Orange Social Venture Prize Tech Queen also stressing that she is committed to using the award to make a difference in the world.
