### Terms and Conditions
- [x] I agree to the [Grant Agreement](https://9ba4718…c-5c73-47c3-a024-4fc4e5278803.usrfiles.com/ugd/9ba471_f81ef4e4b5f040038350270590eb2e42.pdf) terms if funded
- [x] I agree to [Provide KYC information](https://9ba4718c-5c73-47c3-a024-4fc4e5278803.usrfiles.com/ugd/9ba471_7d9e73d16b584a61bae92282b208efc4.pdf) if funded above $50,000 USD
- [x] I agree to disclose conflicts of interest
- [x] I agree to adhere to the [Code of Conduct](https://forum.zcashcommunity.com/t/zcg-code-of-conduct/41787) and [Communication Guidelines](https://forum.zcashcommunity.com/t/zcg-communication-guidelines/44284)
- [x] I agree to post request details on the [Community Forum](https://forum.zcashcommunity.com/c/grants/33)
- [x] I understand it is my responsibility to post a link to this issue on the [Zcash Community Forums](https://forum.zcashcommunity.com/c/grants/33) after this application has been submitted so the community can give input. I understand this is required in order for ZCG to discuss and vote on this grant application.
### Application Owners (@Octocat, @Octocat1)
@ogasky,
### Organization Name
Onose Oghenevwogaga
### How did you learn about Zcash Community Grants
community
### Requested Grant Amount (USD)
$9500
### Category
Community
### Project Lead
```project-lead.yaml
Name: Onose Oghenevwogaga
Role: Project Lead
Background: He is co-founder of WittyHub, an advocate of blockchain community development and web3 ecosystem builder. He is the project lead (https://www.linkedin.com/in/onose-ogaga/). Here is my background journey.
(A) Tech Evangelist: I started my tech journey as tech event organizer and community manager with Django Girls (https://djangogirls.org/en/delta1/) and this moved me to organized several other tech events with supports in funding and swags from tech brands like GitLab, GitHub, Elastic, Linode, Mozilla, Wordpress, and many more. However, it is very key to note that I started the GitLab Nigeria Community in 2019 before the COVID 2020 and despite the COVID challenge globally, GitLab became popular in Nigeria & GitLab made me one of the GitLab Heroes.
(B) Founder WittyHub: By being a tech community manager, I noticed that having a co-working space was a big challenge for developers and thus the WittyHub project was conceived towards addressing this gap by providing an easy access co-working for developers with venue for tech events and meetups in Effurun, Nigeria and we had our very first event at WittyHub on March 2, 2019. The hub was later officially commissioned on May 28, 2020 and since that time WittyHub has hosted series of meetups, bootcamps, training, hackathon, and web3 development training for different brands, and also it has provided co-working spaces for developers in Effurun, Warri and environs.
C) Transitioning to Web3: Then we started hosting annual tech conference with the event name as, “CodeUp Festival 2020” on October 1st, 2020 with Linode as the major corporate sponsorship of that event. However, web3 started gaining more popularity in Nigeria in that same 2020. Thus in the year 2021 we changed the annual title to “CodeUp Blockchain Festival 2021” which was held on October 1st 2021 with Polygon being the major sponsor and supported by Ethereum and other brands. Below are some of the web3 events that I have organized or co-hosted.
1. As the convener of CodeUp Blockchain Festivals, I have been privileged to host Blockchain events in Nigeria, Ghana, Uganda & Zimbabwe. Below are links to some photos.
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1V7KU9aI6jruklHnAREDdfT0syLHH4J35?usp=drive_link
https://drive.google.com/drive/u/0/mobile/folders/1OPGYCu7IeVTO25OywITq2QLOmrRuCkoi?usp=drive_link
2. I have organized Blockchain event for Zcash with links below
https://oga4sky.medium.com/taking-zcash-to-schools-maiden-event-930a390f81bf
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1OPGYCu7IeVTO25OywITq2QLOmrRuCkoi?usp=drive_link
3. I have organized Blockchain event for Stacks with link below
https://twitter.com/OGA4SKY/status/1778946772452143330?t=ID6JvfwOgTEq6tJYAjrZPA&s=19
4. As a Polygon Community Advocate, I also introduced Polygon to Nigerian Youth Corps Members in Otuoke, of Bayelsa State, Nigeria. See link below
https://x.com/OGA4SKY/status/1516534245090545669?t=OvCKQUvh4bK7AdT9HF7KKA&s=08
https://drive.google.com/drive/u/0/mobile/folders/1YdcO0mtyToTmQbQxdvynjf5X5lr40FRl?usp=drive_link
5. Just recently I co-hosted a Stellar Blockchain event in the city of Enugu, Nigeria. See the link here below.
https://medium.com/@oga4sky/myself-as-cohost-for-stellar-dev-game-fest-event-in-enugu-nigeria-c54d9fa52414
6. Also recently, I hosted a Valentine PizzaDAO Meetup & Night Party at WittyHub and the link is below
https://medium.com/@oga4sky/how-i-hosted-the-valentine-pizzadao-meetup-night-party-ae76cbb7cfb6
7. Finally, I was privilege to attend an Artificial Intelligence training in China at the Nanjing University of Information Science Technology (NUIST) in the province of Nanjing, China. See the link below for more details
https://www.linkedin.com/posts/onose-ogaga_i-bring-you-greetings-from-the-peoples-republic-activity-7261393232230539264-1njy?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAAKj_YkBvFwcSh5Au2SJy7bvaiiHQLrF23I
From 2017 till date, I have been able to impact over 5000 youths with relevant digital and tech skills in the web2 and web3 space. Thus my background and experience, with the support from WittyHub team will be a great booster to the project delivery and capacity in piloting this project for the advancement of the Zcash protocol in Nigeria and beyond through the **Taking Zcash To Schools 2.0** project.
```
### Additional Team Members
```team-members.yaml
- Name: WittyHub
Role: Project Support Partner
Background: WittyHub is into web3 training, events hosting and it is a place where developers code, create and collaborate. WittyHub is also a member hub of the **Innovation Support Network (ISN)** a network of over 200 tech and web3 hubs in Nigeria spread across all the 36 states, including the Federal capital territory, Abuja. WittyHub will serve as the project support partner and is located at #28 Jakpa road, Effurun, Delta state, Nigeria.
Responsibilities: To provide support team members of 3 persons to assist in this project.
```
### Project Summary
**Taking Zcash to Schools 2.0** is a three-month outreach and adoption program designed to introduce Nigerian university students and young tech professionals to the privacy-preserving cryptocurrency Zcash (ZEC) through a coordinated series of educational and experiential events.
### Project Description
**Project Overview**
Title: Taking Zcash to Schools 2.0
Duration: 3 months (one academic quarter)
Geography: Warri, Enugu, and Abraka—three university/Web3 hubs in southern Nigeria.
Funding Requested: $9,500 USD
**Vision**
To establish Zcash (ZEC) as the privacy-first digital currency of choice for Nigeria’s next generation of developers, entrepreneurs, and creators by embedding hands-on wallet usage, zero-knowledge literacy, and real-world spending experiences into campus culture.
**1. Monthly Meetups**
Over the three-month program, we will host one meetup on three different cities (total = 3 sessions, 50 participants each). Sessions open with a beginner-friendly talk unpacking zero-knowledge proofs and how Zcash uses them for privacy. Attendees then walk through downloading, funding, and sending their first shielded-address transaction. By the end of the series we expect at least 150 brand-new wallets in active use. Each participant also receives a video link to “Zcash Wallet Quick-Start Guide” they can reference later or share with peers.
**2. Zcash Hackathon (48-hour, hybrid)**
Mid-program we run a two-day hackathon combining an on-site venue with a livestream for remote teams. Mentors drawn from the Zcash community, WittyHub and local developer circles will coach participants on the Zcash SDK, light-client libraries, and best practices for shielded integrations. Teams compete to build practical applications—payment gateways, donation platforms, remittance tools, privacy layers for NFTs, and more. We anticipate ten or more working prototypes, all open-sourced on GitHub for the community to build upon.
**3. Zcash Concert & Showcase**
To reach beyond the tech crowd, the finale is a live music event headlined by youth-focused artists and social-media influencers. Entry tickets, merchandise, and charitable donations are payable exclusively in ZEC, giving every attendee a reason to install and use a wallet. The concert doubles as a demo floor where hackathon teams exhibit their prototypes. Targeting a turnout of up to 1,000 attendees, the showcase delivers on-the-ground transaction volume and widespread media buzz under the hashtag #Zcash2Schools.
**Core Goals & Success Criteria**
**1.Grow the active Zcash user base**
Success target: At least 100 brand-new Zcash wallets created, each funded and used, generating 300+ on-chain peer-to-peer ZEC transactions during the three-month program.
**2.Cultivate a local developer ecosystem**
Success target: Introduce 30 or more developers to the Zcash SDK and light-client libraries and produce three or more open-source prototype dApps at the hackathon.
**3.Increase mainstream visibility of Zcash privacy technology**
Success target: Achieve 5,000+ media impressions through student newspapers and radio, tech blogs, influencer posts, and the social-media hashtag #Zcash2Schools.
**4.Ensure long-term, grassroots sustainability**
Success target: Formally launch “Taking Zcash to Schools 2.0” campus chapters with elected student leads who host monthly meetups, and enroll the top hackathon teams in a three-month post-event incubation track to keep development momentum alive.
**Rationale**
**1. Continuity:** Revives the original 2023 “Taking Zcash to Schools” initiative that proved concept viability but stalled for lack of funds.
**2. Segment Focus:** University communities are fertile ground for grassroots crypto adoption; students quickly become evangelists within wider peer networks.
**3. Privacy Education Gap:** Few Nigerian crypto programs highlight financial privacy; Zcash’s shielded transaction capability fills this knowledge void. With increasing surveillance requirements from local exchanges, Zcash’s shielded-transaction capability fills a growing privacy need.
### Proposed Problem
Despite Nigeria’s booming interest in cryptocurrency, most university students and young tech professionals remain unaware of— or misinformed about—privacy-preserving digital money. High-profile hacks, intrusive surveillance, and compulsory KYC rules have made many users believe that transactional privacy is impossible or unlawful. As a result, Zcash—a network uniquely designed to protect financial confidentiality through zero-knowledge proofs—has almost no grassroots footprint in Nigerian campuses, developer circles, or youth-culture spaces.
Compounding the awareness gap is a shortage of local developer expertise: few programmers have ever touched the Zcash SDK, and nearly all hackathons focus on Ethereum or simpler EVM chains. Without hands-on guidance, the barrier to building or integrating shielded-address functionality feels insurmountable.
Finally, mainstream engagement tools that could popularize privacy tech among non-technical audiences (music events, social media campaigns, influencer advocacy) are rarely tied to concrete, on-chain experiences. This leaves a critical missed opportunity: thousands of students attend concerts and campus fairs every semester, yet none are nudged to try a shielded ZEC transaction in real life.
Taking Zcash to Schools 2.0 directly confronts these challenges by combining structured education, developer mentorship, and culture-driven incentives to:
1. Demystify zero-knowledge proofs and legitimate privacy use-cases,
2. Equip local builders with the tooling and community support to innovate on Zcash, and
3. Embed practical, everyday spending of ZEC into youthful social environments.
### Proposed Solution
**Taking Zcash To Schools 2.0** offers a three-pronged, action-oriented solution to bridge the awareness, adoption, and developer gaps around Zcash in Nigeria’s youth and university ecosystem.
**1. Education Through Meetups**
We will organize interactive meetups in three major university & web3 hubs in Nigeria (Warri, Enugu & Abraka) & over a three-month period. These events will focus on demystifying zero-knowledge proofs and explaining how Zcash uses them for privacy-preserving transactions. Students will get hands-on guidance in downloading, setting up, and using shielded wallets—making privacy real, not theoretical. Gamified activities like ZEC-rewarded quizzes will further incentivize learning and participation.
**2. Developer Engagement via a Zcash Hackathon**
To address the lack of local technical skills, we’ll host a 48-hour hybrid hackathon for developers. The event will include training on Zcash SDKs, light-client libraries, and real-world use cases. Participants will be mentored by experts from the Zcash community, WittyHub, and local web3 communities. The goal is to generate at least three functional dApps (e.g., donation platforms or payment apps) that are open-sourced and serve as templates for future builders.
**3.Mainstream Cultural Integration Through the Zcash Concert & Showcase**
We will organize a high-energy music event where tickets, merchandise, and donations are payable only in ZEC. This will introduce Zcash to a non-technical audience in a setting that feels fun and relevant. Youth influencers and performing artists will promote the event and help drive wallet downloads and real-world usage. At the same event, hackathon winners will demo their projects to a wider audience, creating a feedback loop between builders and users.
**4. Sustained Visibility with a Digital Media Campaign**
Throughout the quarter, we’ll run weekly content drops on Twitter, campus radio, and student blogs under the #Zcash2Schools campaign. This will include explainer videos, Twitter Spaces, and weekly challenges that reward participants with micro ZEC tips. The goal is to extend Zcash’s visibility far beyond physical events and embed its message into student-led digital culture.
Together, these activities will not only raise awareness of Zcash and its privacy features but also spark the growth of a local ecosystem of users, developers, and advocates who understand and believe in the value of financial privacy.
### Solution Format
Our plan produces four tightly defined deliverables, each designed for a different audience: students, developers, the general public, and the Zcash ecosystem’s funders and future organizers.
**Campus Education Series**
Over the three-month period we will stage 3 in-person meetups across three major university & web3 hubs in Nigeria (Warri, Enugu & Abraka). Every session supplies a complete slide deck (made available both as PDFs and Google Slides), a hands-on wallet-installation lab, and a printed or downloadable Zcash Wallet Quick-Start booklet. The three flagship meetups will be recorded and published on YouTube so student can revisit the material or share it with friends.
**48-Hour Hybrid Hackathon**
close to end-programme we host an intensive weekend hackathon that is streamed live and fully recorded. All workshops, mentor Q&As, and final pitches will be archived online. The codebase for at least three working prototype dApps will be released on a public GitHub repository under an MIT licence, accompanied by a concise “Build Guide” that walks newcomers through Zcash-SDK set-up, common pitfalls, and recommended next steps. This deliverable squarely targets developers and builders.
**Zcash Concert & Showcase**
Our finale is a free, gated-entry music & comedy event promoted by top youth influencers. Attendees secure their spots by registering a Zcash wallet address; the gate scan verifies that address and issues an on-chain proof-of-attendance NFT (or scannable QR certificate) at entry. Merchandise sales, charity tips, and a live raffle draw—with prizes such as artist-signed memorabilia and pre-loaded ZEC—are all payable exclusively in ZEC to showcase real-world spending. After the show we will release a three-minute highlight reel for social media and a KPI dashboard that details wallets created, ZEC volume transacted, raffle participation, and overall social-media reach. This deliverable targets the wider youth audience and mainstream observers while demonstrating Zcash utility in a vibrant cultural setting.
**Impact & Sustainability Package**
Two weeks after the programme ends we will submit a comprehensive, Impact Report to the Zcash grant committee and published on the grant application thread. The document details quantitative metrics, lessons learned, and a full budget reconciliation. Bundled with the report is a three-month incubation roadmap for hackathon winners.
Together, these deliverables provide durable educational assets, open-source software, mainstream cultural engagement, and a clear blueprint for long-term community growth around Zcash.
### Dependencies
**1. ZecHub:** This open source Zcash education platform will be highly depended upon towards accessing Zcash educational resources for meetups and hackathon as well as references to web3 developers transitioning to Zcash developers.
**2. WittyHub:** This will be depended upon for the provision of 3 support team members to assist in this project for successful delivery.
### Technical Approach
**Technical Approach**
Our aim is to give students and organizers a dependable, low-maintenance Zcash environment rather than bury them in source-code details. The approach focuses on well-supported tools, cloud services, and clear operational workflows.
**Private-by-Default Wallet On-Boarding**
1. We rely on the official Zcash Mobile Wallets (Zecwallet Lite, YWallet) and the Zcash Android / iOS SDK demo apps. Meet-up facilitators guide participants through installing a wallet, creating a Unified Address, and sending their first shielded transaction.
2. A small, grant-funded “faucet” distributes starter ZEC so every learner can transact without personal cost.
**Dedicated Light Client Server**
1. A low-cost virtual private server (VPS) hosts lightwalletd, the lightweight Zcash service that streams block data and verifies transactions for mobile wallets. Running our own instance prevents congestion on public nodes and guarantees a stable endpoint for all campus devices.
2. Basic monitoring (CPU, memory, sync height) is exposed via a simple web dashboard so organizers can spot issues early.
**Hackathon Enablement Toolkit**
1. Instead of raw coding tutorials, we supply pre-configured project templates and step-by-step build guides that explain where to plug in Zcash functionality. Participants focus on ideas—donation flows, payment screens, privacy add-ons—while the heavy cryptography is handled by the official SDKs.
2. Mentors provide live “office hours” to help teams integrate wallets, request test coins, and publish a working prototype by the 48-hour deadline.
**Event Registration & Gated Entry**
1. Concert attendees reserve free tickets by submitting a Zcash wallet address through an online form. At the gate, a quick QR scan confirms the reservation and issues a proof-of-attendance certificate (NFT or QR token) so each guest leaves with a verifiable Zcash transaction in their history.
2. A built-in raffle draw uses those same wallet addresses to pick winners transparently, encouraging everyone to keep their wallet active.
**Real-Time Payment Experience**
1. For merchandise stalls and donation kiosks, tablets display a Zcash payment QR code and instantly acknowledge incoming payments by listening to the lightwalletd stream. Cashiers see a “Payment detected” banner within seconds and a “Confirmed” checkmark a couple of minutes later, matching typical contactless-card wait times.
**Data Collection & Impact Metrics**
1. Wallet-creation counts, on-chain transaction IDs, event check-ins, and raffle entries are logged—without personal identities—in an encrypted database. Nightly summaries feed a public KPI page that shows progress toward targets (wallets, transactions, media reach) in real time.
**Security & Privacy Safeguards**
1. The VPS is firewalled, runs automatic security updates, and enforces TLS encryption for all traffic. No private keys are ever stored on the server; it handles only public data and encrypted viewing keys.
2. All attendance and raffle records are anonymised—only wallet addresses and cryptographic proofs are kept—preserving participant privacy while still allowing transparent audits.
### Upstream Merge Opportunities
Not Applicable
### Hardware/Software Costs (USD)
None
### Hardware/Software Justification
Not Applicable
### Service Costs (USD)
None
### Service Costs Justification
Not Applicable
### Compensation Costs (USD)
$9500
### Compensation Costs Justification
**1. Project Team**
- Onose Oghenevwogaga: $500 (monthly fee) = $500 x 3 months = $1500
- WittyHub: $400 x 3 persons monthly = 1200 x 3 months = $3600
**SUB-TOTAL = $5100 USD**
**2. Total Monthly Meetups Budget**
- Venue Rental = $100 x 3 meetups = $300
- Multimedia & sound equipment = $50 x 3 meetups = $150
- Swags Production = $100 x 3 meetups = $300
- Refreshments = $250 x 3 meetups = $750
**SUB-TOTAL = $1500 USD**
**3. Budget for 48 hours (2 days) Hackathon**
- Venue Rental = $200
- Equipment = $100
- Refreshment = $500
- Swags T-shirts = $100
- Cloud/VPS Budget = $100
- Hackers Prizes/Awards = $300
- Logistics & Miscellaneous = $100
**SUB-TOTAL = $1400 USD**
**4. Zcash Concert & Showcase**
- Venue = $250
- Refreshment = $500
- Swags production = $150
- Celebrities/Influencers = $200
- Raffle Draw Prizes =$300
- Publicity & Media Coverage = $100
**SUB-TOTAL = $1500 USD**
**GRAND TOTAL = $9500 USD**
### Total Budget (USD)
$9500
### Previous Funding
No
### Previous Funding Details
Not Applicable
### Other Funding Sources
No
### Other Funding Sources Details
Not Applicable
### Implementation Risks
We do not foresee any obstacles that would prevent us from carrying out the planned activities. With the resources, timeline, and risk-mitigation measures already in place, we are confident the project can be executed smoothly and deliver its intended results.
### Potential Side Effects
We do not anticipate any adverse impacts.
### Success Metrics
We will judge success by tracking concrete, on-chain activity, learning outcomes, and community continuity—not just event head-counts.
**1. Real-World ZEC Usage**
- At least 100 newly created Zcash wallets each funded with a confirmed shielded transaction.
- A cumulative total of 300 or more peer-to-peer ZEC transfers recorded during the three-month period.
- Merchandise and raffle draws tickets at the concert processed 100 percent in ZEC, with volumes published in the post-event dashboard.
**2. Developer Engagement**
- Thirty or more developers complete the hackathon, evidenced by submitting a working prototype that calls Zcash light-client APIs.
- A minimum of three prototypes publicly released on GitHub under an open-source licence and still receiving commits 30 days after the hackathon.
**3. Visibility and Reach**
- Five thousand or more verifiable media impressions, calculated from YouTube views, Twitter/X analytics, campus-radio listener estimates, and influencer post metrics tagged #Zcash2Schools.
- At least three earned-media articles or blog posts covering the programme published by independent student or tech outlets.
**4. Knowledge Retention**
- Pre- and post-workshop quizzes show an average 40 percent improvement in participants’ understanding of zero-knowledge proofs and shielded transactions.
- Seventy-five percent of surveyed attendees report that they can install, fund, and send ZEC without assistance one month after the final meetup.
**5. Sustainability**
- Formal launch & set up of “Taking Zcash To Schools” committees on at least one of the three partner campuses, each holding a follow-up meetup within six weeks after the grant period.
- Continuation funding or sponsorship identified for at least one of the open-source hackathon projects.
Meeting—or exceeding—these benchmarks will demonstrate that the initiative generated lasting adoption, practical technical skill, and a self-propelling student community around Zcash privacy technology.
### Startup Funding (USD)
None
### Startup Funding Justification
Not Applicable
### Milestone Details
```milestones.yaml
- Milestone: 1
Amount (USD): 3100
Expected Completion Date: 2025-06-30
Deliverables: Progress report and performance metrics
- Milestone: 2
Amount (USD): 3200
Expected Completion Date: 2025-07-31
Deliverables: Progress report and performance metrics
- Milestone: 3
Amount (USD): 3200
Expected Completion Date: 2025-08-31
Deliverables: Progress report and performance metrics
```
### Supporting Documents
```files.yaml
For background on **Taking Zcash to Schools 1.0,** see the full recap here:
https://oga4sky.medium.com/taking-zcash-to-schools-maiden-event-930a390f81bf
```