In the quiet Choggu community in Ghana’s Northern Region, many young people dream of a better future, but for most, those dreams feel out of reach. One major challenge is the lack of access to technology, which makes it harder for students to do well in school and compete with their counterparts in other developed parts of the world.
For Mohammed Awal Lukeman, things changed when he got the chance to be part of the Yamoransa Model Labs Program (YM Labs). This opportunity has shaped his path and helped him believe that his dreams are possible. Mohammed’s story reflects what the Yamoransa Model is all about: helping students discover their potential by bridging the educational gap through technology.
The Yamoransa Model Labs, established by the Helping Africa Foundation and managed by IMPLEMENTERS, are transforming the lives of students by providing underserved communities with a cutting-edge technology to facilitate learning. These labs are making efforts in closing the digital divide and lighting up great minds through the power of technology, innovation, and hope.
At just 13 years old, Mohammed Awal joined YM Lab 4 in Choggu when he was in junior high school. At the time, he had no experience in robotics or information technology. Like many of his peers, he had never touched a robotic kit, let alone imagined himself building one. His first few days in the lab were filled with wide-eyed wonder. As a novice, he was unsure of how to navigate this new world filled with blinking LED lights, circuit boards, and robotic kits, but leveraging his curiosity, he quickly blossomed into the new environment with determination and focus.
Mohammed embraced every learning opportunity at the lab, and in no time, his enthusiasm and dedication didn’t go unnoticed. He was selected to represent YM Lab 4 at the Annual Impact Roundtable Discussion & Robotics Competition (AIRTAD) in 2023. Though his team didn’t win that year, witnessing students’ participation from across the country, exhibitions of mind-blowing innovations created by the students, stirred a deeper quest in him. Mohammed discovered his passion for innovation.
After AIRTAD that year, Mohammed took on leadership roles in school. He vied for the senior prefect position in his school, all the while spending hours in the lab building his skills. This is where his desire to pursue engineering in the future started budding, a decision he credits largely to his exposure at YM Lab 4.
Determined to nurture that passion, the center managers of YM Lab 4 made a bold and personal investment in his future. Together with Mohammed, they chose a senior high school closer to another YM lab to keep his journey going. He enrolled at Akrokerri Senior High School, where he joined YM Lab 3.1. Surrounded by peers with similar passion and equal access to the tools he loved, Mohammed flourished.
In 2025, Mohammed returned to AIRTAD, this time as a senior high school competitor, representing YM Lab 3.1. He played a leading role in their participation, advancing his team to the grand finale of the senior high school robotics competition. Though they didn’t take first place, his presence, confidence, and skill caught the attention of many.
His journey from being a boy uncertain about robotics, to now pushing every limit as a young innovator, leading his peers, exemplifies the essence of how opportunities serve as a driver to realising ambitions.
Mohammed’s story is just the beginning. The Yamoransa Model is reaching thousands of students across Ghana and West Africa, sparking new ambitions, creating access where there was none, and preparing a new generation of African innovators, creators, and problem-solvers. By far, the YM Labs programs have impacted over 29,000 students in Ghana and there is more set in place to reach more areas in the country.
