Correspondence from Northern Region

Students of the Engineering Department of the Tamale Technical University (TaTU) have developed new ‘smart-litter bins’ that rewards users with crypto-currency for dumping refuse in them.

The smart litter bins use Radio Frequency Identification (RFID)- wireless technology that uses radio waves to automatically identify and track tags attached to objects- to identify users and reward them with a token on a secured website managed by the students.

The students showcased the smart litter bins for the first time at the launch of the Africa Science Week in Tamale on Thursday, organized by the African Institute for Mathematical Sciences (AIMS) Network, a pan-African network of "Centres of Excellence" dedicated to postgraduate training, research, and public engagement in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM).

The innovation was part of several innovations including Smart Fire Detectors, Modernized Building Blocks among others, displayed by the Engineering Department at the Africa Science Week in Tamale.

Ibrahim Maltiti Mohammed, one of the students while showcasing the smart litter bins said the idea is to encourage people to use litter bins, saying that by dumping refuse in bins, it would help reduce flooding caused as a result of choked gutters and drainage.

Director of AIMS Industry Initiative and Future of Science Forum, Dr Charles Lebon Mberi Kimpolo in a statement presented at the launch of the Africa Science Week said the “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.