A few days ago I talked about my journey as a self-taught coder. We decided to compile a list of some coding initiatives that are being run in Zimbabwe. The list aims to show people communities that they can join to learn code or discuss code related stuff. If we missed anything, please tell us about it so we can add it.
ZimboPY – Free
Started out as Code Purple and then evolved into ZimboPy. It is more focused on empowering girls through code by teaching them Python programming. Lessons are done at community center coding clubs and currently, there are two. One is located in Mufakose and another in Highfields in Harare. A new one will be coming at the Discovereum children’s museum.
They also have a mentorship week where they work with girls in universities and connect them to Python developers around the country and the world. During the mentorship week, the girls learn how to pair program and work in a team. The goal of that is to complete a project that will help the community.
PyCon – Paid
This is a four-day conference that aims to increase the visibility of developers. It brings together people of different knowledge and skill levels in Python. Talks, tutorials, and coding exercises are conducted during the conference to share the knowledge around the people.
They also host Django girls – a free workshop hosted during the conference, which is aimed at empowering girls through Python. PyCon and ZimboPy work together closely during this workshop to teach girls how to code.
Devshop – Free
It is a developer-focused company which works closely with the TechVillage in Bulawayo. Their aim is to train developers for placement in a company. They also do software development for individuals and companies. Once you have completed the training, you will start to get a commission on all the software development projects that you do for clients.
To join, you can either apply through the TechVillage or directly from their website.
WordPress Harare – Free
A group of developers that meet up every month to share ideas around WordPress. Each meetup will have a speaker and a topic that will be the focus. Most of their meetups in recent months have been held at Moto Republik. They also have a WhatsApp group where members share tips and ways to do stuff.
WordCamp Harare – Paid
A conference that is focused around WordPress. People come to share ideas about how can they can use WordPress as developers or as a part of their businesses. More information about it and how to join is available on this article.
Muzinda Hub – Paid
Muzinda Hub is more of a school where you pay tuition to learn different programming languages. At the end of a course, you will have completed a set of projects and you will also get a certificate. They also help with placement at software development companies.
Zimcode – Free
They are an organization which was founded in 2016 that aims to reduce the socio-economic barriers of entry into the IT field by teaching students at schools in Bulawayo how to code. You can read more about Zimcode here.
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10 comments
You forgot several from Bulawayo
Theres Zimcode, they teach high school students how to code and have been active for over 2 years now and are supported by NUST, they teach close to 100 students a year. The 2017 batch is starting this June. They conduct their lessons at Skyhub.
There’s also OWASP Bulawayo Chapter, vibrant community and possibly the biggest group of programmers and security people in Zimbabwe, they’ve been active since 2015 and hold meetups regularly, they have hackathons, capture the flag challenges… etc. The next meetup is in August 2017. They have their meetups at Skyhub, Trust Academy, NUST and Bulawayo Polytechnic
There is also a competitive programming sect in Bulawayo which holds meetups and challenges bi-monthly at Skyhub co-working space. The next meetup is in August 2017.
There is also a new tech hub opening in Bulawayo sometime in August.
Other notable presences in Bulawayo which hold developer focused meetups in Bulawayo are Mozilla Maker( should have a meetup in the coming months) and a Raspberry Pi dev group(last meeting was last week).
Wow, that’s great. Thanks for the information. Can you give me the contact details of the people who are in charge of each one so I have a chat with them and get to know more.
Hi Rufaro. Thanks for the interest. My name is Alvin. I’m the founder of Zim Code. You can email me at alvin@zimcode.org and we can take it from there. Thanks.
Thanks will be in touch.
OWASP Byo: https://www.owasp.org/index.php/Bulawayo
You forgot techworldcodeschool which started in April based at Techworld internet cafe.
community is learning java
Hello,
instead of java, I would suggest to learn c++.
Java needs runtimes and has too many security risks.
Python is somehwat a hacking language. Many frameworks for hacking are based on python code. But strong apps use cpp.
Keep up the good work, education is all!
Regards,
Sascha
Java is just fine for its purposes. Different problems require different tools to solve them.
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