Partnership develops females in IT

PinkCodrs was founded by Mbali Hlongwane with the view of helping improve the dismal numbers of female developers in Africa by providing opportunities to women interested in coding and creating sustainable change in the software development industry.

The PinkCodrs initiative which aims to bring a number of different women who share their passion for software development under one roof will host two types of events this year – Meet-ups and Workshops. Meet-ups, much like the cloud meet-up that took place earlier this year and will take place in the three cities – with focus on the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

In June 2019, PinkCodrs Africa (PCA) hosted a cloud meetup at JoziHub in Auckland Park, where many women looking to be empowered were in attendance. The aim of the event was to shed more light with regard to the cloud computing space, provide networking opportunities for the ladies present and allow keynote speakers to address the audience on various topics related to cloud computing. Various speakers were present including Kemiso Motaung from Kaizer Chiefs who officially announced the partnership between PinkCodrs and Kaizer Chiefs. The organisers shared programmes planned for the year and how Kaizer Chiefs will play a role in bringing them to fruition.

Madoda Khuzwayo from Hiringly, a recruitment company spoke about his journey in the South African startup ecosystem. Thereafter, a thought-provoking panel discussion chaired by Buntu Mjaja from AndAfrica, a tech investment company took place. Some of the panelists included Helen Tladi from SITA and Kemiso Motaung from Kaizer Chiefs. Gerhard Bothma from Huawei shared some thrilling insights about the Huawei Cloud.

PinkCodrs Africa is navigating its way towards becoming one of the top organisations which solemnly seeks to empower women within the tech industry. In August, the organisation extended its branches to expand the community by launching in Cape Town.

More than 150 women, all hailing from various institutions (Cape Peninsula University of Cape Town, University of Western Cape and University of Cape Town) within the city came together to experience an environment where women are the pioneers, learning from women in the industry and one another. There, a space between those who are aspiring to be in the industry and those who have already found their niche was presented and connections were made.

A powerhouse of women who happen to be within the industry as well as are partners with PinkCodrs, addressed the women on what the practical aspect of (Coding, ICT or software development) is like. The event was a four-hour long session filled with laughter, installation of wisdom and sharing of experiences in attempts to aid and support growth.

Kemiso Motaung from Kaizer Chiefs, Lumka Nzima from Snake Nation and Esso Ndlovu from Liquid Telecom were the guests of the evening who gave the women that much needed tad bit of enthusiasm about ICT and being female within this male dominated field.