Following weeks of submission and short-listing of entries by a panel of judges, all is now set for the maiden edition of TopApps Awards on Thursday, September 27, 2012 at AITI (Ghana-India Kofi Annan Centre of Excellence in ICT). TopApps Awards is Ghana’s first applications (apps) exhibition and award event, organized by PopOut, a Ghanaian IT solutions start up. The event, slated for 4.00pm, is under the theme: “Innovations Made in Ghana”, and it would showcase the innovation of young Ghanaian apps developers and reward the top innovative and creative ones. A statement from PopOut, signed by its Managing Director, Maximus Ametorgoh said: “The app industry is a new niche frontier in the software technology space and it is redefining the trends in data consumption as well as the business of technology.” It said TopApps Awards is therefore designed as an annual exhibition and awards event for local app developers leading that redefinition in data consumption and technology. “It’s the red carpet event for app developers,” the statement said. The scheme was launched on April 5th, 2012 by Madam Dorothy Gordon, Executive Director of Ghana-India Kofi Annan Centre of Excellence in ICT, during the Online 2012 event. There are eleven categories of the awards, including Special Recognition Award. The nominees presented the profiles of their apps to a panel of judges who has local market insights and global exposure to select the finalists for various categories. The judges scored the apps based on their innovativeness, originality, creativity and local/global market value. Another novelty about the scheme was the first-time-in-Ghana social media public voting in which the public were given the opportunity to vote for the apps on Facebook and Twitter. Public voting constitutes 30% of the total score, and panel of judges scored the remaining 70%. The short-listed nominees for the various categories in the maiden edition of Ghana’s first apps award are as follows: 1. Top Apps 2012 Nominees •Kuzima •Dropifi •233Law •HeiJulor •Saya •iWarrior and Kijiji •Gripeline 2. Mobile App •iWarrior and Kijiji •233Law •Saya •SmartPost Mobile •Streemio 3. Web App •AppCompile.com •Kuzima •GetFeatured.biz •Gripeline •iWallet •mytxtbuddyDropifi •AdBrooks 4. SMS App •Hei Julor •SmartPost Mobile •JumpFon •mytxtbuddy •Esoko •iKwery •Farmerline 5. Most Innovative New App •BlackDJ •Azonto Bash •Saya •233Law •Dropifi •BlackSheep •Hei Julor •iKwery •AdBrooks 6. Top User Experience App •Kuzima •Saya •Authors Safe Pro •mytxtbuddy •Streemio •Dropifi •Gripeline 7. Entertainment App •BlackDJ •Azonto Bash •iWarrior and Kijiji •FM Live •Reckon Player •Saya •Streemio •BlackSheep •Logikross II 8. Social App •233Law •Esoko •Farmerline •Kuzima 9. App Developer Of The Year •Kweku Danso, Yougora •Eyram Tawia, Leti Games •Samuel Gaisie-Yeboah, Softreckon •Robert Lamptey, Saya 10. App Company Of The Year •Yougora Limited •Softreckon •BlackSoft Developers Ltd •DreamOval •Streemio •Saya Mobile •Leti Games Ltd 11. Special Recognition Award •Personality: Raindolf Owusu; Florence Toffa •Organization: Mobile Web Ghana; MEST; Ashesi TopApps Award 2012 is being organized by PopOut in partnership with Ghana-India Kofi Annan Centre of Excellence in ICT, BusyInternet and Citi 97.3fm. It is supported by Edge Capital, Erke Ghana, Enquesta, Rack Africa, TelecomEye, GhanaBusinessNews, BusinessGhana and BROS SMS.