< Zim / Code >
"Bringing programming to the forefront of youth education and empowerment in Zimbabwe."
"Bringing programming to the forefront of youth education and empowerment in Zimbabwe."
Project Summary
2-3 sentences describing the venture (to be used in public announcements about the seed grant competition).
The aim of Zim Code is to provide disadvantaged Zimbabwean youths free access to the resources they need to learn how to program and apply
their newly learned skills in their communities. Through this project, they will learn the fundamentals of programming and use
code to come up with solutions to socio-economic problems that Zimbabwe faces.
Project Details
Describe your project/venture and its general business plan (i.e. how it will function/operate).
Zim Code will provide resources (computers, internet access and lecturer material)
required to introduce programming to Zimbabwean youths (age 14-19years). These youths will be
comprised of both enrolled high school students and school dropouts. It will also cater for kids with below
average to no computer skills to enable them to program efficiently. Zim Code will also seek to identify other areas of I.T that may be
helpful for youths in the above mentioned demographic. To ensure high quality learning, Zim Code will work closely with two Computer
Science professors, one from Wesleyan University and another from the National University of Science and Technology(N.U.S.T) in Bulawayo.
For participants enrolled in high schools, Zim Code will have sessions during school hours to reduce scheduling conflicts and traveling costs.
The Social Problem
Explain the social problem that your venture will address. Include data to explain the scope and severity.
Due to the high unemployment rate (85-93%) and weak economy in Zimbabwe, about 43% of students dropout of school. 52% of these are girls (Source: Herald 03/17/15). Most resort to small scale informal entrepreneurship in order to survive, mostly selling vegetables on street corners. Their chances of re-entering the education system are very low. These youths become vulnerable to abuse, violence, rape and disease from prostitution, drugs and human trafficking. (Source: Fair Planet)
Those who remain in school don't receive the quality education that they ought to get. One of the many failings of the Zimbabwe curriculum is the way it is lagging behind modern day technology. Computer Science is a rare subject in Zimbabwean public schools. Schools lack computers and internet access, among many other essentials required to teach it. The few private schools that teach it put very little emphasis into its applications in the modern world.
The majority of the 57% that manages to graduate from high school can't afford to go on to college, neither can they find a job to earn the money. They get stuck in an economy dominated by Technology companies like Econet Wireless Zimbabwe without any relevant skills or knowledge. The only viable forms of entrepreneurship involve making apps, websites and other cutting edge innovations that create new markets and jobs like Avelgood Apps (Source: IT News Africa). In Zimbabwe, informal employment is, at best, just a desperate attempt to survive.
The Anticipated Impact
Describe and quantify anticipated output, outcomes, and impacts of the project.
The aim of the project is to groom young Zimbabweans into ambitious and technology-aware entrepreneurs who can create sustainable and viable employment for themselves and their embattled communities. Zim Code will act as the stepping stone they need to enter Zimbabwe's technology entrepreneurship scene through programming.
The appreciation of technology through programming can unlock myriad opportunities. Zim Code aims to transform its participants into skilled, knowledgable and aware individuals that are able to use I.T entrepreneurship to better their lives and their communities, especially financially. The participants can then go on to open Coding clubs at their high schools and communities and spread the skills and knowledge, independent of Zim Code. Their skills will also put them at an advantage when seeking out various internship and scholarship opportunities around the world, including at American universities, where over 2000 highly talented Zimbabweans are currently studying. Such a paradigm shift has the potential to steer the Zimbabwean economy forward and reduce unemployment.
Zim Code will also be collecting accurate real-time data relevant to youth employment and entrepreneurship as a way to establish a deeper understanding of the social problem at hand and come up with feasible and sustainable solutions to the socio-economic problems in Zimbabwe. Key areas of thus data collection interest include employment, health and education statistics.
Long Term Goals
What does the organization hope to achieve in the long run?
We hope to expand the Zim Code project into an organization that strives to find solutions to socio-economic issues affecting Zimbabwean youths in various other ways different from programming. This idea is mainly based on the the Diverge-Converge design thinking approach, used by organizations like IDEO to identify specific problems in society and converge on the appropriate solution. The strategy of this organization will be based on the data gathered over the summer by the Zim Code project. Some of the areas the organization may venture into include:-
1. Investing in youths by providing the resources they need to acquire skills (e.g programming, business management) that make them relevant and competitive in entrepreneurship, job markets and scholarship application processes.
2. Informing youths about the various opportunities available to them to educate themselves, especially American tertiary education. This will be achieved by working closely with EducationUSA, the Harare US Embassy and USAP.
3. Supporting startups and organizations founded by youths in an attempt to create employment and alleviate the socio-political problems in Zimbabwe. This will be achieved by providing access to resources, information, data and strategies that are tailored for startups in developing socio-economic climates.
Budget Breakdown
How will you spend the grant?
Operating Costs
i. Fixed personnel costs - $2000
ii. Personnel Allowances - $ 50
Capital Expenditure
i. Purchase of capital equipment - $2500
Revenue Expenditure
i. Daily office and operational - $ 400
expenses
Miscellaneous
i. Contingency Reserve - $ 50
Zim Code plans to engage local corporate organizations for sponsorship to fund Zim Code's revenue expenditure and expansion beyond this summer. An example of a startup that thrived from local sponsorship, having begun with an American college grant is Lead Us Today, founded by Harvard alumni Dalumuzi Happy Mhlanga. LUT is a solid example that such a business model is sustainable in Zimbabwe, particularly in the city of Bulawayo. Local I.T companies always bemoan the lack of youth involvement in their industry and such a solution to the problem will surely be welcomed positively.
Participating schools
Mpopoma High School ( Eric '13 & Tafara '14)
St. Columba's High School (Alvin '14).
Supporting Staff
Olivier Hermant (PhD) Wesleyan University Computer Science visiting professor. He will assist with the curriculum, structure and execution of the project.
National University of Science and Technology (N.U.S.T) Computer Science professor. He will oversee the teaching of the course, grading and final projects.
Kelvin Chawafambira Freshman Computer Science Student at N.U.S.T. He currently holds the Zimbabwe national record for the highest number of A's (16) ever in the national ZIMSEC O'Level Examinations. His enthusiasm and intelligence are welcome editions to the team.
Testing the weaknesses of the model
Team Members
Name: Alvin Chitena
Founder
Email: achitena@wesleyan.edu
Major: Computer Science and Mathematics
Class: 2019 (USAP '14)
What are your strengths and qualifications that prepare you for success?
In 2014, Alvin was chosen to be one of 37 intelligent, low income students to participate in the USAP program, which was founded by Rebecca Ziegler Mano in 1999. USAP paid for his SATs, application fees and gave him access to a pool of resources that made his success possible. Unfortunately, such opportunities in Zimbabwe are limited. Since then, his drive has been to create more opportunities like USAP to give talented youths a chance to educate themselves and better their lives and communities.
When Alvin came to Wesleyan, he enrolled into Introduction to Programming. He fell in love with coding and immediately knew how he was going to give back to his community. This is how Zim Code was born. Alvin hopes to use his expansive work experience and familiarity with I.T entrepreneurship in his city to drive Zim Code forward.
Name: Eric Khumalo
University of California, Berkeley
Email: ekhumalo@berkeley.edu
Major: Computer Science
Class: 2019 (USAP '14)
What are your strengths and qualifications that prepare you for success?
Eric is the valedictorian of all the schools he attended. He attained 4 A's at Mpopoma High School in 2013. In the same year, he made the top ten of the National Mathematics Olympiad and has since volunteered to teach Mathematics to students in his community.
Eric co-founded HCFN (Help the Children. Feed the Nation), an organization that raised money to feed homeless kids in Bulawayo. He is also working on establishing e-learning in Bulawayo to provide the community with an alternative to illegal migration to South Africa in search of greener pastures. Eric hopes to use his social entrepreneurial drive to intensify Zim Code's efforts in Bulawayo.
Name: Tafara Makaza
N.U.S.T
Email: tafaramakaza@gmail.com
Major: Actuarial Science
Class: 2019
What are your strengths and qualifications that prepare you for success?
Tafara is an intelligent and driven individual. He boasts of great academic prowess, having attained 3 A's and 2 B's at Mpopoma High School in 2014. He volunteers often, in local orphanages and hospitals as a way to give back to his community. He is a participant of the prestigious Joshua Nkomo Scholarship Fund.
In 2015, he founded ExcelAfrica. The goal of his organization is to enhance the quality of education in Zimbabwe by providing resources and mentorship to students. He is currently studying at a local university, but is an aspiring member of the Wesleyan University Class of 2020. Tafara hopes to use Zim Code as a tool to enhance the value of Zimbabwean education and boost entrepreneurship among youths.