Co-creation Hub’s Design Lab Kigali is, on Friday, expected to launch the ‘Design Fellowship’, a six-month immersive training programme for recent graduates looking to address some of Africa’s complex problems through design-inspired innovations. The Design Lab was launched earlier this year by a Nigerian investor who committed a $10 million investment. The Fellowship is expected to span six months, from July to December 2019. It will feature courses and projects aimed at incorporating human-centered design (HCD) thinking – a framework that involves human perspectives in all steps of the problem-solving process – into how public agencies and corporate organisations solve problems, according to CcHub. This will be done through exploiting technology to improve services, products and processes, and building partnerships and relationships to collaboratively solve significant social and business challenges. Participants are expected to spend time in between the new lab, communities and partner organisation offices to work on real-life projects and programmes aimed at influencing better outcomes. According to the management of the CcHUB Design Lab, prior experience in Human-Centered Design (HCD) is not a necessary requirement for consideration for the Fellowship. Graduates of any discipline are encouraged to apply. Since launching the CcHUB Design Lab in February, this is the first Fellowship designed to further deepen its mission to support Africa’s growing tech sector. By becoming a creative space with a multidisciplinary team of product designers and engineers collaborating with scientists and stakeholders, the Design Lab is exploring the application of emerging technologies that will solve Africa’s systemic problems. Application for the CcHUB Design Fellowship 2019 in Kigali is now open for students and emerging design professionals. editorial@newtimesrwanda.com
