The State Information Technology Agency (SITA), in partnership with the Presidency, on Friday, 22 June, launched a pioneering hackathon to encourage the development of innovative technology to help the country achieve the goals set out in the National Development Plan (NDP) and for South Africa grow and prosper.
The aim? To turn ideas into viable technology solutions to speed up service delivery and work mindfully towards achieving the goals outlined in the government’s National Development Plan 2030 (NDP 2030) for eliminating poverty and reducing inequality.
South Africans from all backgrounds and disciplines are invited to enter their proposals, with the ultimate goal of helping to solve socio-economic challenges standing in the way of the country reaching its full potential.
SITA believes it can make a positive contribution through the smart, effective use of information technology – and is delighted to be endorsed by the Presidency in this inspirational initiative.
Participants (in teams of three to five) are asked to draw up proposals, including “problem statements” and their proposed business solutions. The idea is to “connect, collaborate and deliver”, and hack solutions falling in the scope of the NDP 2030.
Once initial adjudication has taken place and the best proposals shortlisted, the selected participants will be invited to take part in the two-day hackathon, to be held in Durban later this year. Mentors will be on hand to assist at the event.
The final, winning solutions will make a real difference to people’s lives. They will be deployed at certain government institutions for the good of all South Africans – hence the hackathon name: #NDP2030Hackathon – doing it for the country”.
Entrants do not have to be experienced in programming and data science – SITA and its industry partners will provide mentorship and training.
The hackathon categories are:
- Code jam – building innovative software engineering solutions such as mobile apps
- Data science – building innovative products and providing insights on specific sets of data, data mash-ups and solutions
- The Internet of Things – building innovative smart devices that can sense, connect, infer and act
Anyone aged 18 and older can enter – from officials at government institutions, state-owned companies and private corporations, to employees at non-governmental and non-profit organisations, students and anyone else.
Not only will the best ideas generated take South Africa a step closer to realising its NDP goals, the winners will also be in line for fantastic cash prizes. Winners in each category will receive R100 000, those in second place will be awarded R50 000 and those in third place will walk away with R30 000.
Edited by Daniëlle Kruger
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