First Time Ever: Nepali Team Nominated Finalist in International Blockchain Olympiad

Nepal was nominated as the finalist alongside technological powerhouses like Hong Kong, China, Vietnam, Bangladesh, and the Netherlands in the International Blockchain Olympiad (IBCOL). The olympiad was held from October 8 to October 10 in Bangladesh on the occasion of the country's Golden Jubilee of Independence.

Compared to the previous editions of the olympiad, this year was special for Nepal. In the five year edition of the IBCOL, this is the first time a Nepali team was nominated as finalists. A team of 5 Nepali youths represented Nepal's flag for the first time in this esteemed event. Team Nepal was probably also the team with the youngest members - all five teammates were high school pass-outs.

Team Nepal proposed a novel blockchain architecture that promises to revitalize the banking system in Nepal. CIHB — Centralized Interoperaledger Hyper-Permissioned Blockchain — is the blockchain architecture proposed by the team. The team says CIHB employs the pragmatic blend of Interoperability, Modularity, Centralized Delegated minimal latency PoS, and permissioned Blockchain. CIHB intends to improve the pre-existing banking system with more speed, transparency, and regulation. CIHB was well appreciated by the jury and their fellow finalist teams (Team Hong King, Team Macau, Team Vietnam).

The Nepali team was comprised of high school pass-outs from St. Xavier’s College, Maitighar, Kathmandu (Batch of 2018-2020) - Manshuv Kafle, Razzwol Chapagain, Pratyush Raj Dulal, Rohan Upadhyay, and Reyan Kumar Sapkota. The Team was led by Reyan Kumar Sapkota for the International Blockchain Olympiad. All team members are also the founding board of Nepal Computer Science Alliance (NECSA), the first youth-based tech NGO of its kind. These youths, in their gap year, are involved in various community-based tech projects via their organization.

“It’s an honor and a great responsibility to be representing our flag on such a grand stage," says Reyan. "It’s a great surprise that no Nepali team was nominated as a finalist before. There were no seniors with whom we could take mentorship from. We sincerely wish to witness a grand involvement from Nepali teams next year and also wish a winner from Nepal in the subsequent editions of IBCOL. NECSA is willing to support the upcoming teams with absolute commitment. IBCOL is a wonderful opportunity not only to participate but also to meet fantastic Blockchain enthusiasts from all over the world.”

To proliferate Blockchain’s magnificence among the youths in Nepal, NECSA is planning to inaugurate the Nepal Blockchain Society (NBS) very soon.

“If the negotiations with foreign delegates reach a sound agreement (which we hope it will), NBS will be introduced this month,” says NECSA Board.