"Generation Z: Children's Welfare" hackfest at AUCA

March 23, 2018

The Central Asian Hackfest 2018 "Generation Z: Children's Welfare" was launched in Kyrgyzstan where IT developers from the countries in the region will work together to find digital solutions to promote and protect children's rights. With the advent of a new generation of Z - children and adolescents, almost from infancy, involved in the world of social networks and smartphones - new varieties of needs and challenges emerged. The main goal of the event is to develop innovative services based on digital technologies aimed at eliminating violence against children in Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and other countries.

According to the UNICEF data, every third Internet user is a child. "Every day more than 175,000 children start using Internet for the first time. Given virtual access to many opportunities, children are exposed to new risks. It is necessary to make more efforts to protect effectively the online life of children, "said Munir Mamedzade, a deputy head of the UNICEF Office in the Kyrgyz Republic.

"Children rely more and more on digital technologies in everyday life, but in our region there are very few digital services, and we need to develop them more actively. In particular, it is necessary to strengthen the focus of the Taza Koom digital transformation project on the needs of children, as a future foundation for the social development of Kyrgyzstan”, said Nazgul Turdubekova, the representative of the Central Asian Coalition for the Promotion of the Children and Women Rights.

Considering the magnitude of the problem of violence against children, a group of partners is organizing this event: the Central Asian Coalition for Women and Children Rights, Foundation “Child’s Rights Defenders League”, Neobis IT Company in partnership with UNICEF, the Embassy of Netherlands, State Committee of Information Technologies and Communications, AKIpress news agency, and American University of Central Asia.

In the result of the Hackfest on March 23-25 2018 in Bishkek, the teams of developers from Central Asian countries should offer innovative solutions in the following topical areas: Cybersecurity; Children's health; Family environment; Educational environment; Children in communities. Up to 3-4 innovative digital services that will help to improve the coverage and access of children at the national and regional levels will be selected. In the future, proposed solutions can be implemented in the public sector, private companies and other organizations, which are directly involved in working with children.

As part of the Hackfest, it is planned to develop actively innovative approaches through the promotion of science and technology at TECHFEST 2018 event that will be held in Bishkek in May 2018.

http://hackfest.incentral.asia

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