A final-year student of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, KNUST, has been shortlisted among the top 50 individuals for the 2022 Chegg.org Global Student Prize.

Mathias Charles Yabe, was the only Ghanaian student selected from nearly 7,000 entries from over 150 countries. 

The annual $100,000 award is conferred on a student making impactful strides on learning, and transforming lives of their peers and society.

Mathias is presently the Chief Executive of AkoFresh, an AgriTech start-up, which offers smallholder farmers solar-powered cold storage preservation technologies to reduce post-harvest losses. 

The storage facility helps extend the shelf life of perishable crops from five days to 21 days, helping farmers to store perishable crops over five times longer than their shelf life under ambient temperatures. 

The affordable and accessible technology to rural farmers thus reduces post-harvest losses by 50%. 

Mathias, a Total Energies best young start-up recipient, also championed the designing of a disability-friendly virtual learning platform for hearing impaired students. 

The technology, designed during the peak of COVID-19, afforded over 250 high school students an easy platform to aid them in studying during school closures. 

Top 10 finalists of the Global Student Prize are expected to be announced in August 2022, out of which the overall winner will emerge.

The Varkey Foundation partnered with Chegg.org to launch the annual Global Student Prize last year, a sister award to its $1 million Global Teacher Prize.

It was established to emphasize the outstanding efforts of students globally, who altogether, are transforming the world positively. 

Founder of the Varkey Foundation, Sunny Varkey said “I extend my warmest congratulations to Mathias. His story is a testament to the crucial role that education plays in building a better tomorrow for us all. It is the key to solving humanity’s greatest challenges, from war and conflict to climate change to growing inequality. As time runs out to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, it is more important than ever to prioritize education so we can face the future with confidence”. 

Students above the age of 15 and enrolled in an academic institution or skills programme are eligible to apply for the award. 

Applicants are assessed on their academic achievement, their impact on peers, the difference they make in their community and beyond, their creativity and innovation, and how they operate as global citizens