theGrio’s 100: David Moinina Sengeh, bridging the gap between tech and Africa

David Moinina Sengeh is a student at MIT and  proud black man from Sierra Leone. Among his talents are biomechanics engineer, fashion designer, and TED Fellow.

 Why is David Monina Sengeh in theGrio’s 100?

Sengeh is the president and co-founder of Global Mininum Inc. (GMin) ,co-founder of Lebone Solutions Inc., and owner of Nyali Clothing. GMin is an international company that has distributed over 15,000 mosquito nets in Sierra Leone.The purpose is to dramatically reduce malaria and other diseases borne by insects in his homeland.

. Currently, GMin’s main project is Innovate Salone, the first-ever competition created to foster innovation among high-school students in Sierra Leone. Innovate Salone is a mentorship program and schedule of workshops where Sierra Leone’s youth can get help in developing their ideas. The workshops at Lebone Solutions Inc. has won $200,000 from the World Bank to produce microbial fuel cells in Africa.

Sengeh has also served as mentor to a Grio’s 100 honoree from last year, Kelvin Doe, a teenager from Sierra Leone with a natural gift for making his own homemade electronics. Sengeh discovered Doe while running his annual summer innovation camp.

Sengeh is working toward his Ph.D at MIT’s Media Lab. He is focused on technologies to improve the functionality of prosthetic limbs, designing the next generation of wearable mechanical interfaces.  He is a uniquely gifted talent scout among Sierra Leone’s youths. As he put it, “My strongest impulse is to empower youths in developing countries to design their on solutions to everyday problems.”

WATCH SENGEH’S COMMENCEMENT SPEECH AT BURR AND BURTON ACADEMY:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uOIH_J_V3IU