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Two teams from De Aar and Kimberley won the chance to attend the National Hackathon competition, igniteHack, to be held in Gauteng from 28 to 30 September.
The team from De Aar, Immortality, developed an app called Community Hub which will help communities to stay updated about events, job posts and school news.
B2G, the Kimberley-based team, came up with a web application that will allow users to register their newborn babies online.
These were only two of the teams to battle it out at the competition’s provincial leg held in De Aar from 31 August to 2 September.
This was the fourth NCDev Hackathon to be hosted in the Northern Cape, and it continues to raise the profile of the province as a growing, active and vibrant hub for technology and innovation.
It is aimed at providing renewed hope to unemployed people who are positive about government.
Partnering in this initiative are the Northern Cape Department of Economic Development and Tourism, GKSS Research Centre, the Sol Plaatje University, the State Information Technology Agency, the Department of Public Service and Administration, FibreCo and Angel Resources and the Pixley Ka-Seme District Municipality.
This event gives was all about the connection among young, skilled, creative and ambitious people the opportunity to share knowledge, collaborate on projects, network with industry leaders and obtain information and communication technology training to improve and enhance their digital skills in the province.
A hackathon – also known as a hackday, hackfest or codefest – is an event where computer programmers and others involved in software development and hardware development, such as graphic designers, interface designers and project managers, collaborate on software projects.
The Northern Cape leg was hosted by the Pixley Ka-Seme District Municipality for the first time, served to launch the DPSA’s Public Service Month.
The ultimate prize for this Hackathon was a trip to the National Hackathon sponsored by DPSA at end of September, in Gauteng.
The Northern Cape Department of Economic Development and Tourism is serious about improving skills and knowledge in the province. Previous targeted hacks have been hosted in Mier, Kathu and Upington.
With these events, the department aims to transition the Northern Cape into a knowledge-based economy and all these kinds of activities contributes to achieving this goal.
According to Mohau Girruite of the department, the department invests in these hackathons to achieve its objective of developing a knowledgeable society through innovation.
“This will enhance inclusive economic growth aimed at stimulating and developing information and communication technology and entrepreneurship in the province,” he said.
