13-year-old’s fruit-picking robot beats the world’s best as two more Ugandan innovators earn global honours
Uganda has won a Gold Medal at the 2026 International Greenwich Olympiad (IGO), an international platform for student-led research and interdisciplinary competition, spanning both scientific and creative disciplines, held in London, United Kingdom.
Roshan Aitham Karoobi, a Senior One student at Light Academy Secondary School in Entebbe, topped the STEM Lesson Presentation category for his project, Physics in Action: How a Fruit-Picking Robot Uses Newton’s Laws of Motion.
Two other young Ugandan innovators, Luke Oz Governor Mukulembeze (12, Grade 7) and Israel Mbonye (14, Grade 7), both of Shekinah International School in Entebbe, also did the country proud in London, earning an Honourable Mention for their joint Engineering project, Implementing and Designing a Low-Cost Sustainable Farming Solution for Uganda.
All three students competed under the African School of Innovations Science and Technology (ASIST) Ltd, through its flagship programme, Young Engineers Uganda.
“When Roshan first showed me his idea for a robot that could pick fruit using the same physics we learn in class, I knew he had something special,” said Monica Arinaitwe, Roshan’s Coach. “He spent six months building, testing and rebuilding that robot. Watching him stand on that stage in London and receive gold was one of the proudest moments of my career as an educator.”
The Gold Medal Project
Roshan’s winning project addressed a problem familiar to Uganda’s farmers: labour shortages, time-consuming and repetitive harvesting work, high labour costs, and the share of every harvest lost to waste. His project showed how a fruit-picking robot, designed around Newton’s Laws of Motion, could ease that burden, speaking directly to UN Sustainable Development Goal 2 (Zero Hunger) and Goal 9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure).
Roshan, who started the project at the beginning of the year, competed as an individual entrant against students from across the world.
“I wanted to build something that could actually help farmers back home, not just something for a science fair,” Roshan said. “Seeing my country’s flag next to the word ‘Gold’ is something I’ll never forget. I hope other young Ugandans watching this know that you don’t need to be from a big country to win , you just need an idea and people who believe in you.”
The Honourable Mention Project
Luke and Israel’s project, entered in the Engineering category, is an automated greenhouse built on Arduino-based monitoring and control, with automatic irrigation and live tracking of temperature and humidity , a practical, low-cost answer to sustainable farming in Uganda.
“Our project was inspired by the challenges farmers face in Uganda. We wanted to show that innovation and technology can help improve agricultural productivity, food security, and livelihoods. My participation in IGO motivates me to keep developing solutions that create real impact,” Said Israel!
“We believe every community deserves access to clean and safe water. Our project demonstrates how science and innovation can contribute to better health, environmental sustainability, and food security. This recognition encourages us to continue using STEM to solve global challenges.” Said Luke!
“These two boys are barely into secondary school, but they think like engineers twice their age,” said Mr Allan Mugarura, their coach, who mentored Luke and Israel through six months of prototyping. “They rebuilt that irrigation system more times than I can count until it worked exactly as they wanted. An Honourable Mention at IGO, at their age, on their first attempt, tells you everything about where Uganda’s next generation of engineers is headed.”
A Global Stage
IGO is an international platform for student-led research and interdisciplinary competition,spanning both scientific and creative disciplines, organised and hosted by North London Grammar School in the United Kingdom, bringing together young innovators from around the world to celebrate innovation,
creativity, collaboration, and youth-led solutions addressing real-world challenges through
the framework of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
This year’s edition drew 362 participants from 53 countries, selected from more than 1000 registered participants worldwide. Gold medals were awarded to the single best project in each competition category, meaning Roshan’s win placed him ahead of every other entrant in his category!
What This Means for Uganda
Uganda’s gold at IGO 2026 adds to a fast-growing record of international results for ASIST / Young Engineers Uganda, a Kampala-based STEM and robotics education organisation founded in 2015 by journalist Dr. Arinaitwe Rugyendo.
ASIST-trained students have represented Africa for four consecutive years at the VEX Robotics World Championship in Dallas and St Louis, USA. ASIST has set a record performance at the Pan-African Robotics Competition in Dakar, Senegal for the last three years winning 2nd place on the continent, was crowned World Champion ( Gold medalists) at The Enjoy AI 2024 Global Final in Shanghai, China and qualified Team HYDRO SAPIENS for the 2026 MATE ROV Underwater Robotics World Championship in Newfoundland and Labrador , Canada, making Uganda one of only two African countries to qualify to compete!
“This Gold Medal at IGO is proof of what we have believed since we started this organisation eleven years ago , that a Ugandan child, given the right mentorship and the right opportunity, can stand toe to toe with the best young minds anywhere in the world,” said Maureen Ayebare Karamagi, IGO Team Leader / CEO of ASIST / Young Engineers Uganda. “Roshan’s win in London is not just his. It belongs to every parent who drove their child to a Saturday robotics class or paid for their Robotics class in their school, every teacher who stayed late to help debug a project, and every Ugandan who still believes our young people can compete and win on the world stage.”
“Getting three students from Uganda onto a stage in London takes a lot more than a good idea , it takes logistics, fundraising, paperwork and a team that refuses to let any detail slip,” said Caroline Kapere Tusiimire , COO of ASIST / Young Engineers Uganda. “I’m proud of how far our students have come, and prouder still of how many more are coming up behind them. This is only the beginning of Uganda’s story at competitions like IGO.”
Looking Ahead
ASIST says it will continue to scout and mentor young innovators through its national programmes, with the aim of sending more Ugandan students to international science and robotics competitions in the years ahead.
About ASIST / Young Engineers Uganda
The African School of Innovations Science and Technology (ASIST) Ltd is Uganda’s leading STEM and robotics education organisation, founded in 2015. Through its flagship programme, Young Engineers Uganda, part of a global STEM enrichment programme founded in Israel in 2008 and now active in over 70 countries , ASIST equips Ugandan children aged 4 to 21 with hands-on skills in robotics, coding, engineering and applied science.
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