The Telenor Youth Forum’s 2017-2018 programme culminated May 31 at the dtac headquarters in Bangkok, where a delegation of 24 young leaders from 12 nations pitched four new services to Nobel Peace Center’s Executive Director, Liv Tørres, and Telenor Group’s Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, Wenche Agerup, among others.
The winning team AGNCY receives USD 15,000 (NOK 100,000) in funding, as well as advisory from their Telenor mentor, with the aim to further develop their service mainly in Bangladesh and Myanmar. Telenor has made a commitment to reduce inequalities through its services, in accordance with the UN Sustainable Development Goal #10, and sees potential in winning team, AGNCY, to reduce inequalities for underrepresented working people around the world.
Team AGNCY was mentored by Grameenphone CEO, Michael Foley. Myat Moe Khaing one of the two winning delegates from the last Telenor Youth Forum Bangladesh round, who is currently working in Grameenphone is also a core member of the winning team.
The other three services pitched to the jury include a Big Data project to prevent malaria outbreaks; an online birth registry for disenfranchised children; and a chatbot that counsels teens on internet safety.
Speaking on the occasion Grameenphone CEO Michael Foley said, ” This service will be very useful in Bangladesh, where labor rights violations often go unnoticed due to lack of proper monitoring. At Grameenphone, we always adhere to laws related to labor and environmental protection and we are particularly pleased to see this tool that when fully developed can go a long way to ensure labor rights in the country.”
Telenor Youth Forum kicked off during the Nobel Peace Prize week in Oslo in December 2017, where the 24 delegates were split into four teams, each with a unique social challenge to solve. From that point onwards, the delegates worked to develop their ideas, conduct user research and prototype their services, leading them to the Bangkok finale.
“We have made a commitment to use Telenor’s global scale, our standards and our people’s competencies to bridge gaps in equality. By pairing technology with resourceful young minds, we can help reduce inequalities. I believe in the potential of AGNCY’s service and I’m excited to see what the future holds for these talented young individuals,” said Telenor Group Chief Corporate Affairs Officer, Wenche Agerup.
Telenor Youth Forum is a global platform built upon the idea of bright minds working together to reduce inequalities. In collaboration with the Nobel Peace Center, the forum brings together young leaders from around the world to develop digital solutions that empower societies.
Out of nearly 8,000 applicants, 24 accomplished delegates aged 20-28 were selected to represent their countries in the 2017-2018 programme.
