World Robot Olympiad Broadens Its Reach Across Africa

The World Robot Olympiad (WRO), one of the largest global robotics competitions, has announced a significant expansion across Africa—growing from five participating countries in 2020 to 14 in 2025, with over 40,000 young participants expected this season.

According to the organisers, more than 2,000 teachers across the continent have been trained, supported by global partners such as Google, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, and WRO’s extensive network of educators and industry experts.

The initiative focuses on equipping African youths with essential skills in coding, engineering, and artificial intelligence to prepare them for the future workforce.

Each year, students participating in WRO design and build robots that tackle real-world challenges. The 2025 theme, “The Future of Robots,” has inspired a surge of bootcamps and workshops across several African countries, reaching learners in underserved areas and special needs communities.

National champions from each country will advance to represent Africa at the WRO International Final in Singapore this November, joining teams from over 90 nations. In Zimbabwe, Team FutureSight, winners of the National Senior Category, created an AI-powered voice assistant to help visually impaired users navigate daily life — a solution now being adapted into local languages for greater accessibility.

In South Africa, the journey of Karabo Rithuri highlights WRO’s long-term impact. She joined the competition at age 13, represented her country at the international finals in Malaysia, and later founded her own robotics club after her school’s programme ended. Now a graduate in Finance and IT, Rithuri serves as a WRO judge and mentors young innovators from township communities.

“WRO gave me a voice, and now I want to help make things even better for the next generation,” she shared.

WRO Secretary General, Claus Ditlev Christensen, described the growing presence of the competition in Africa as a key milestone in its global mission. “Expanding our footprint across Africa is an important step in inspiring young people through robotics and STEM. We’re proud to see African students developing both technical expertise and real-world solutions that benefit their communities,” he said.

With Africa’s rapidly expanding youth population, the World Robot Olympiad continues to serve as a vital platform for building skills, driving innovation, and fostering global collaboration.