The 2019 cohort.

After the TIFA Research survey of 622 students across 42 Kenyan universities, MK-Africa pivoted the Challenge to a thematic SDG approach. 2019 focused on SDGs 1–5 — the unfinished business from the MDGs (No Poverty, Zero Hunger, Good Health, Quality Education, Gender Equality).

Finalists won a fully-paid 5-day trip to South Africa to attend Cambridge ISL's Sustainability Practitioners Program, plus presentation-skills training, business incubation and mentorship. The winner-selection process ran in three stages: feasibility review, prototype development, and community living-lab testing.