Telkom subsidiary BCX says it will make a significant contribution as the new primary growth partner of WeThinkCode, a tuition-free programme designed to educate the next generation of software engineers in South Africa.<\/p>\n
BCX said it will provide R60 million over three years for WeThinkCode to invest in the next generation of talent in the ICT sector.<\/p>\n
With the support of this BCX investment, WeThinkCode will have more than doubled the number of entry-level coders in the South African Market by the end of 2018.<\/p>\n
These funds will enable expansions and upgrades in WeThinkCode\u2019s Johannesburg office and allow for the opening of a new campus in Cape Town in 2017.<\/p>\n
As part of this agreement, BCX and other Telkom Group companies will host 40 interns from WeThinkCode\u2019s innovative educational programme every year for the next three years.<\/p>\n
WeThinkCode was launched in South Africa in 2015, and first opened its doors to students in January 2016. WeThinkCode seeks to eliminate the skills shortage by developing 100,000 coders in Africa over the next 10 years, and is free to all participants.<\/p>\n
Nearly 40,000 South African students applied for the programme in 2017, and 200 students were accepted into the elite course.<\/p>\n
According to a 2015 survey by the Joburg Centre for Software engineering, South African businesses were reporting anywhere between 30,000 and 70,000 tech industry vacancies for skilled IT workers.<\/p>\n
WeThinkCode is open to anyone between the age of 17 and 35. Students don\u2019t need any previous education, including matric. Prospective students complete an aptitude test followed by a 4-week boot camp, before undertaking a two-year course in programming and coding. Students concurrently complete internships to ensure that their skills are applied in real-life scenarios.<\/p>\n
WeThinkCode will be using the funds provided by BCX to enable expansion of their current Johannesburg facility, cover tuition costs for students and begin developing a new campus in Cape Town.<\/p>\n
This new campus, built to further diversify the student profile of WeThinkCode, will hold 200 more students and is expected to offer its first classes in early 2018.<\/p>\n