Students have a chance to innovate at the FoICT annual hackathon

Students have a chance to innovate at the FoICT annual hackathon. TUIT’s Faculty of Information and Communication Technology (FoICT) held the 5th annual Tshwane Varsity Hackathon from 1 to 3 September, kicking off spring with a bang.

Providing a playground for students to develop their innovation skills, these hackathons are aligned with the strategic pillars of the Tshwane University of Technology and the National Development Plan of the RSA to prepare future-ready graduates and enhance employability.

Students have a chance to innovate at the FoICT annual hackathon

The TVH hackathon competition, organized by FoICT in collaboration with Amazon Web Services (AWS), the City of Tshwane, and the industry, specifically addresses Chapter 9 of the National Development Plan (Vision 2030) of the Government of the Republic of South Africa that emphasizes “Improving Education, Training and Innovation.””.

Taking part in the competition provides students with a significant opportunity to act as positive change agents in society.

Through the use of technology, students enable global citizens to solve complex challenges they face today. Through this approach, the University ensures that its students are capable of solving these problems once they are employed in industry.

Prior to the hackathon, industry partners, the City of Tshwane, and other universities discussed current challenges that could be applied to technology solutions at an undisclosed venue. Backlogs were created for these challenges and ideas. Before the Hackathon’s official launch, the hackers participating in the competition didn’t know what the challenges were.

TVH perfectly fits into the City of Tshwane’s innovation strategy, says Dr Thato Shuping, Director of the Innovation Unit at CoT, since it satisfies five of its key innovative strategic goals.

There are a number of objectives to be achieved, including: expanding and strengthening an inclusive innovation ecosystem; decentralizing digital management programmes; modernising innovation governance structures; launching new strategic platforms for testing service delivery solutions; and building a portfolio of service delivery projects that add value.

 There are many ideas that come from the city and its residents, but innovators don’t have a platform to share these ideas.

TVH hopes to assist us in conceptualising and developing innovative solutions aimed at improving the quality of life in Tshwane and service delivery in the city,” said Tahwane’s mayor.

Dr Moshe Masonta emphasized the importance of 4IR and Cloud Computing in his presentation as a guest speaker and CSIR Principal Researcher for Next Generation Enterprises and Institutions.

We can control our physical world from a virtual world using 4IR, which is rooted in digitalization. It is possible to deliver computing services over the internet since cloud computing cuts across many networks.”

Due to the success of previous hackathons, faculty members are confident that more students can benefit from the work and more solutions can be found for Africa’s problems while youth remain active and engaged in tech development.

Due to the limited time allowed to complete the assignments, hackathons serve as a useful innovation playground for students and provide opportunities to practice design science and perform under pressure.

Providing access to commercial digital platforms such as AWS for building digital solutions will enhance students’ digital skills for the future of work,” said Mashitishi Phurutsi, Manager of FoICT’s First Year and Foundation Unit.