| About it |
The BiT Makerspace at Bahir Dar Institute of Technology (BiT), Bahir Dar University aims to create an innovative environment for BiT students and staff as well as the wider community. The makerspace has been organized with state-of-the-art digital manufacturing technology such as 3D printers, a CNC router, and CNC Laser Cutting machines, as also classic workshop tools, digital electronics tools, and a computer lab.
The need to establish a Makerspace at Bahir Dar University was identified by Dr. Seifu Tilahun in 2018. In 2019 Dr. Lara Allen from the Centre for Global Equality (Cambridge, UK) raised funds from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and co-founded the Makerspace with BiT. Collaborative projects between Cambridge and Bahir Dar based in the Makerspace are part of an ongoing partnership between BiT and CGE to create an enabling environment in Bahir Dar for Inclusive Innovation – innovation for, with and by the rising billions. The makerspace is now a flagship initiative of BiT’s Business Incubation and Techno-Entrepreneurship Centre.
The maker space was founded in 2019 by Dr Seifu A Tilahun, Miss Sewenet Alemu, and Mr Henok Mebratie, all from the Bahir Dar Institute of Technology, together with Dr Lara Allen from the Center for Global Equality in Cambridge. Currently, BiT Makerspace is under the management of Dr Amare Kassaw and Miss Bezawork Tilahun Mindaye.
Increasingly acknowledged as one of the best digital fabrication centers in Ethiopia, BiT Makerspace has excellent staff and well-organized and maintained facilities, resources, and state-of-the-art digital equipment. Established to create an innovative environment for BiT students, it functions as a hub for technology-based startups. The Makerspace, which is housed within the BiT Business Incubation and Techno-Entrepreneurship Centre, provides training on Human-Centered Design, Techno-Entrepreneurial Skills, prototyping skills; Basic Electronics, and Digital Manufacturing technology.
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