3 minute read
HACKING AWAY AT UNEMPLOYMENT
Kingman – 1st place winners
SALGA Gauteng region joined the Empire Partner Foundation in hosting a two-day youth hackathon aimed at assisting the province’s youth to create youth-driven solutions to the unemployment crisis.
The collaboration set the tone for nding solutions that can help ease the impact of joblessness on young people. Designed for people aged 18–35, the hackathon created an opportunity for young people with pro cient technological skills to curate solutions that can be deployed in addressing this national challenge. The event attracted interest from a large number of young people across the province.
“The Youth Hackathon Empowerment Programme aims to position the youth as drivers of solutions and support the national agenda towards youth development,” says SALGA’s senior adviser of inclusive communities in Gauteng Nomthandazo Mbonelwa.
“We chose Youth Month to highlight the public sector issue. It was vital to take a completely inclusive approach by giving the youth the opportunity to work on solving the youth unemployment issue themselves, using creativity, technology and applying their skills and hearts,” says EPF’s project manager, Nsovo Chawane.
“The speci c unemployment challenge the hackathon focused on was the youth procurement opportunities within the government sector and other entities. This exposed them to entrepreneurship and sponsorship opportunities,” adds Jasmine Mokwena, head of marketing at EPF.
UPLIFTING EXPERIENCE THAT IS OPENING DOORS
The teams were provided with the digital interventions that are key to solving the challenge for which they were innovating. The winning team (Kingsman) devised an integrated enterprise solution enabling a seamless application and adjudication process that can be deployed by both the public and private sectors.
“The hackathon was initiated in this nancial year (2021/22) with a plan to host it on an annual basis,” says Mbonelwa. “Technological solutions realised through the hackathon will give the youth access to local government procurement opportunities, thereby improving their employment prospects. The hackathon has also assisted with personal and technical learning as well as providing collaboration opportunities.”
Out of the 250 applicants who raised their hands to be part of the hackathon, 44 developers were selected to participate in the nal rounds.
“We have noticed a rise in female participation at our hackathons and we hope to see more (women developers) in the future,” says Mokwena.
“The EPF would like to expand the programme beyond Gauteng to reach prospective participants in all nine provinces. We are seeking ways to re ne our virtual participation platform and make it more e cient. We would also love to have more support from private and major public entities,” she adds.
Ronald Qobolo was one of the participants in the hackathon and the leader of the winning team, Kingsman. He regards the experience as an uplifting engagement that has changed how he perceives the role of technology in formulating solutions to common challenges.
“The best experience about the hackathon was seeing a team of complete strangers from di erent backgrounds and with di erent ideologies unite to bring a solution to life,” he says. “The fact that we relied on each other for the solution to come together made me realise that I needed to be at my level best when it came to presenting our solution. After taking a few deep breaths, everything was in sync.”
The hackathon was supported by the O ce of the Premier, the Tshepo 1 Million initiative, the MEC of Economic Development, and the CEO of the Gauteng Enterprise Propeller, Saki Zamxaka. ▪
Cool Hacks – 3rd place winners
SALGA in the Gauteng province collaborated with the Empire Partner Foundation to stage a successful Youth Month hackathon. By Levi Letsoko
