TL;DR,
- The Hedera hackathon 2025 prize pool doubled to $2M with UGFS North Africa’s investment.
- Africa’s largest blockchain competition combines $2M in prizes with extensive developer training through 100+ university partnerships, focusing on practical solutions for finance, sustainability, identity, and gaming applications.
- The expanded hackathon program offers Hedera network certification, technical workshops, and hands-on guidance from certified engineers.
The Hedera Hackathon 2025 just got an upgrade with the United Gulf Financial Services Stream (UGFS) North Africa, a Tunisian Venture Capital Fund, doubling its price pool from $1 million to $2 million.
Together with the Hashgraph Association and the Exponential Science Foundation, the web3 hackathon has finally earned its title as the continent’s largest blockchain hackathon to date. While many focus on the lucrative reward, the organizers have a deeper agenda: to empower 10,000+ African developers across multiple nations.
How the Hedera Hackathon Became Africa’s Largest Tech Prize Event
UGFS North Africa has changed the battleground radically by adding $1 million to the Hedera hackathon. Mohamed Salah Frad, Managing Director of UGFS North Africa, elaborated:
“We are very pleased to be participating in the Hedera Hackathon, as this is core to our strategy to invest and help grow innovation across Africa. Collaboration with partners like The Hashgraph Association and Exponential Science Foundation is key to unlocking the continent’s potential. “
Blockchain and AI have taken root in Africa, with local solutions cropping up in each region. The hackathon focuses on empowering this new generation of blockchain developers, with the key incentive being the $2M.
It’s effectively a win-win scenario: developers gain technical, financial, andnenterprenerlua support, while investors zero in on Africa’s next “unicorn” startups. This applies specifically to UGFS, whose long track record of investments has recently shown keen interest in high-impact technology, such as AI, green energy and most recently, blockchain technology.
Comprehensive Hedera Network Developer Training Powers African Talent
Beginners, students and entrepreneurs from diverse backgrounds are encouraged to participate. The main focus is to build on the Hedera network, promoting the organization’s energy-efficient distributed ledger systems.
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Additionally, the event offers extensive Hedera network developer training across physical and virtual environments. Since its launch on August 1, 2025, the initiative has partnered with over 100 universities and tech hubs, Tunisia’s DAR blockchain highlighting as a recent addition.
Currently, the program has had over 10,000 developers from 15 countries sign up, presenting a wide variety of projects. As a bonus, participants gain access to certification programs, technical workshops and hands-on guidance from Hedera certified engineers.
Photo: Hedera
The initiative extends far beyond financial rewards, offering extensive Hedera network developer training across physical and virtual environments. Through partnerships with over 100 universities and tech hubs, including Tunisia’s DAR Blockchain, participants gain access to certification programs, technical workshops, and hands-on guidance from Hedera-certified engineers.
Kamal Youssefi, President of The Hashgraph Association, explained how the scope of their event is more than just checking out skilled developers.
Our efforts to equip developers and entrepreneurs with Web3 skills using the Hedera platform and funding to support digitisation in Africa cannot be done solo. Increasing the prize pool to $2 million will attract more innovative developers and projects to digitise the African continent.
Their main focus is on equipping transferable skills, fostering Hedera’s next builders, employees and mentors.
The Focus is On Utility, solving Real Local Issues.
The organizers have clarified that the four main focus points will be considered; however, other applications will be appreciated.
- On-chain Finance and Real-World Asset Tokenization: Given the statistics, on-chain adoption recently skyrocketed to $205 billion, and its mobile money adoption is a catalyst
- ESG Sustainability and Traceability: Developing transparent supply chains and environmental monitoring systems tailored to African contexts.
- Self-Sovereign Identity and AI: Creating secure digital identity frameworks that respect privacy while expanding access to essential services.
- Gaming, Metaverse, and NFTs: Building creative digital economies that generate new income streams and cultural expressions.
Paolo Tasca, Executive Chairman of the Exponential Science Foundation, reveals how the $2M also encourages more to participate:
A larger prize pool will encourage more developers, projects, and entrepreneurs to join the initiative, turning ideas into ventures that benefit the region.
The UGFS contribution set the record to new heights, but the core focus is on tackling high inflation, limited banking access and cross-border payment friction. Taking a closer look at recent trends, Nigeria, South Africa, and Kenya have recently witnessed a boom in blockchain activities. Blockchain platforms like BASE, Lisk, and Celo have fostered continued growth through web3 hackathons.
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Hedera simply can’t be left on the sidelines, thus combining its network developer training, a pool of mentors and investors, while the alluring $2 million places the venture as a focal point in Africa’s web3 ecosystem.
The shift is rapidly approaching, and you can’t be left behind. Sign-ups are still open. Register at hedera-hackathon.hashgraph.swiss.
