Feeding the future

TECH-SAVVY: GEN Z USING AI, BLOCKCHAIN, BOLD IDEAS TO FIGHT HUNGER >>> Young innovators reimagine food relief in South Africa.

- Citizen reporter

FEEDING HOPE. Hundreds of thousands of children in South Africa depend on feeding schemes to give them a better chance in life. Picture: Supplied

(Supplied)

As with all generation gaps, the older ones tend to accuse the younger generations of being shallow, idle and uncaring about the "big picture" issues.

That accusation has been levelled against members of Generation Z, those born between 1997 and 2012.

Yet, in reality, global surveys have showed this group of young people to be some of the most concerned about the problems confronting humanity... and how to harness technology to deal with them.

And, ahead of World Food Day last week, 60 of South Africa's tech-savvy Gen Z innovators spent a week coming up with digital-driven ideas to tackle one of the country's gravest social issues, child hunger.

During The Biggest Hunger Hack, a challenge hosted by KFC Africa, they used artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain, data visualisation and community-driven platforms to deliver real assistance schemes to combat hunger.

The overall winning team, Ctrl-Alt-Del-Hunger, turned South Africa's food waste crisis into a social impact opportunity.