He saw the vision as a little boy, and he not only hoped that it will come true, he also worked relentlessly to bring it to fruition. Growing up, Joshua took delight in piecing materials from scraps and turning them into highly needed items for his community.
At age 18, the genius created a cellphone using discarded radio parts, old toy cellphone scraps and other junk materials. His invention could reach a cellphone of the same altitude over 1000km using radio signals.
Four years later, he built a home-made foil satellite dish booster, which aims to deliver fast internet access to the widest population at the lowest usage and capital cost and create a strong competitive business.
The 4G compatible dish has a unique model and can fit smoothly into a laptop bag. It also has a USB that enables users to plug in their modem, router or cellphone into one of the ports to increase the internet connection speed.
It is also a wireless device that supports Bluetooth and wireless (WI-FI) connectivity for up to 10 devices. Though it has a battery, it employs a solar charger to ensure usability even in the most remote places.
This device is aimed at bringing connectivity, at better speeds to the masses throughout Africa and to give tourists and farmers the ability to communicate more effectively and conveniently, depending on the wavelength and the location from where the recipient is using his gadget. The young change agent says he is inspired by Alexander Graham Bell who invented the modern telephone that has now become a daily necessity.
Though talented and highly resourceful, Joshua has faced several challenges, the most daunting being the lack of sufficient support, but he presses on; refusing to make any room for excuses.
Once, he almost set his uncle’s house on fire, when he tried an experiment that went awry, but that didn’t discourage him from trying out new possibilities. He believes that any young person can succeed if he is passionate and determined and so, he encourages his peers to be courageous and relentless, to take the bold step to reach their potentials, create solutions and bring about change in Africa, especially in ICT.
For his invention, Joshua was named among the top four, out of more than 2 900 entries from 42 countries, at the South African Innovation Summit held in Cape Town. He also has a patent certificate issued by trade and industry.
Joshua hopes to find partners to bring his invention to the market. He also plans to create more innovative works, to tackle some of the other needs and challenges he sees in the world, and Africa in particular.
The first question I ask myself is:
What do people need and how will they benefit from this invention? and then I get to work on it.
