By: Kanto Kai Okanta
Team HerTECH has won the
2026 Absa Bank Uganda GirlCode Uganda Hackathon with DuukaTalk, a voice-first
digital ledger that helps small business owners record transactions using
voice commands in English or Luganda.
The winning team emerged
from a competition that encouraged young women to develop technology solutions to address practical challenges in their communities.
DuukaTalk allows small
business owners to record business transactions through voice, providing a
simpler way to keep financial records without relying solely on traditional
written or manual processes.
The solution’s support for
both English and Luganda is designed to make digital record-keeping more
accessible to users who may face language or literacy barriers when using
conventional digital tools.
The National ICT Innovation
Hub supported the programme by providing a platform where young women could
develop their ideas, test solutions and turn concepts into practical technology
products.
The Hub congratulated Team
HerTECH on the achievement and said it was proud to have contributed to the
partnership supporting the hackathon.
The victory provides Team
HerTECH with an opportunity to take DuukaTalk beyond the national competition
and towards a wider continental platform, while demonstrating the potential of
young Ugandan women to develop locally relevant digital solutions.
