Hospitality Meets Tech: Ethiopia’s First Hospitality Hackathon Held at Kuriftu and ALX

From April 12 to 13, Ethiopia hosted its first-ever hospitality hackathon, hosted across two venues: ALX Lideta Hub and the Pan African Hall at Kuriftu African Village. The model was borrowed from Cornell University’s and Hilton Hackathon. Cornell University, in collaboration with the hospitality industry, partners with various companies to prepare a hackathon to bring various teams together to answer a specific question through creativity and the use of technology. But this wasn't just a carbon copy. This was Ethiopian themed and focused, yet with a global ambition.

 As Yonaiel Tadiwos, Operations Director at Kuriftu, stated, “The hospitality industry in Ethiopia still has a lot of growing to do. But its future is going to grow with Tech.”