CircTech: Africa’s Next Big Tech Wave Isn’t Fin, It’s Circular
The Problem Isn’t Just Waste. It’s the System.
Every day in Ghana—and across much of the continent—we deal with food waste, plastic waste, e-waste, textile waste… or we don’t. Not because we don’t care, but because we don’t have the infrastructure, tools, or data to actually deal with it.
And here’s the kicker: Tech barely shows up in the conversation. Waste management in Ghana is still largely manual, disjointed, and invisible. We don’t know where the waste goes. We don’t track it. We don’t mine it for value. We certainly don’t monetize it.
Now imagine if we could. What FinTech did for mobile money, CircTech can do for circular solutions. Turning problems we’ve normalized into platforms we can scale.
And right now, Africa’s tech ecosystem is ripe for it.
Why CircTech, and Why Now?
The FinTech wave proved one thing: Africans are ready to adopt and adapt solutions that solve real, daily problems. But that wave is maturing, if not plateauing. Many apps don’t work. Many wallets sit empty. The “next big thing” is no longer in finance. It’s in sustainability-tech but not the boring kind.
Circular Tech (CircTech) is where real-world challenges meet cutting-edge tools: AI, blockchain, IoT, and cloud computing.
This is serious R&D. This is deep systems innovation. This is the new frontier where:
- Developers to create solutions people truly need.
- Startups to profit from products that solve critical issues.
- Investors to fund scalable, impactful technologies.
- Institutions to deploy African-born, viable infrastructure.
What CircTech Looks Like in Action
Here’s how CircTech is already reshaping waste management and sustainability:
- AI for Smart Waste Logistics: Predict how much waste is generated per neighborhood. Automate collection routes. Save cities millions and reduce environmental risk.
- Blockchain for Material Traceability: Track the life cycle of materials—who made it, where it went, how it was reused. Offer brands verifiable sustainability scores. Create trust in recycling.
- IoT for Real-Time Monitoring:Use sensors to monitor bin levels, collection frequencies, or even decomposition rates in landfills. Trigger alerts. Optimize operations. Reduce overflow landfills. Trigger alerts. Optimize operations. Reduce overflow.
- Reverse Vending Machines with Digital Wallet Integration: Deploy smart machines that accept plastic bottles and reward users instantly via MoMo or wallet credit. Make recycling a part of daily behavior.
- Marketplaces for Waste Innovations: Connect waste generators (restaurants, hotels, factories) to innovators (composters, recyclers, up-cyclers) in one sleek, functional digital interface.
This Isn’t Charity—It’s a Co-Build
CircTech isn’t about volunteerism or abstract advocacy. It’s about collaboration / co-building. The process requires:
- Your technical expertise and skills in systems thinking, creativity, and design.
- Our infrastructure access, data, and pilot partnerships through goTo and collaborators.
Together, we bridge gaps to make CircTech viable and scalable.
The goTo Circular Tech Project: Join the Builders
We’ve already started. Here’s what’s underway:
- 🎓 R&D & Labs – Partnering with Academic City University to run hackathons, research sprints, and build Ghana’s first Circular Tech Innovation Lab
- 🛠 Tech Challenges & Demos – Monthly challenges in partnership with Buro Space. Prototype. Demo. Scale.
- 📣 Content & Advocacy – Partnering with creators like Delppy and Dessy Ocean to mainstream CircTech across digital spaces
- 🤝 Corporate Pilots – Real-time testing with businesses on AI waste logistics, blockchain traceability, and smart sorting solutions
By 2025, the project aims to onboard 50+ developers, build 20+ solutions, engage 10+ pilot businesses, and secure $100K+ in investment.
The Opportunity Is Now
You can build the Airbnb of food surplus, the Uber of waste pickups, the Paystack of reusable logistics, or the Flutterwave of smart recycling.
This is not theoretical. This is buildable.
Let’s work together to code a circular economy that solves real-world problems and paves the way for sustainable, scalable innovation.
This is CircTech. This is your frontier. This goTo. Let’s build.
