Two schools, Havenpark Secondary and St. Monicas that joined forces at the Robo Girl 2022 School’s Competition were announced as the winning team at the Robo Girl 2022 Gala Dinner and Awards Ceremony held at the Gateway Hotel, Durban on Saturday, 10 December 2022.

This prestigious event was hosted by the Durban University of Technology (DUT) in collaboration with Lenovo Southern Africa. It came after DUT and Lenovo offered a one-week Coding and Robotics Training programme to 120 schoolgirls from 15 schools in the eThekwini area. The Robo Girl 2022 programme was facilitated by the Department of Information Technology (IT) at DUT.

Havenpark Secondary and St. Monica’s first won the Most Innovative Poster Award before taking to the stage once again for the big prize. The team made out of five ladies was applauded for managing to build and programme a robot that stood out from the rest. Each team member received a Lenovo laptop and certificate. Taking the second position was the Verulam Islamic followed by Brenttonwood high school who took the third position. The Tutor Awards went to Shaffiqe Khan, Sulaimaan Musthan and Shivad Krishna.

Impressed by the participants creativity and innovativeness throughout the competition, the Acting Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research, Innovation and Engagement at DUT, Professor Keolebogile Motaung expressed that she hoped that they will be choosing to join DUT after completing their grade 12. She reiterated that DUT is the number one University of Technology in the country and was ranked in the Top 5 universities in South Africa by the 2023 Times Higher Education World University Rankings.

Adding to the winning team’s excitement, Prof Motaung revealed that the innobiz DUT Centre for Entrepreneurship and Innovation will be offering to mentor and assist the winning team in establishing their start-up company. Prof Motaung added that she wishes to see their winning project being turned into a business that will improve lives. Prof Motaung expressed that she has high hopes for these girls, stating that they will make great leaders that will lead their communities and South Africa to greatness.

“You have the power to rise above all the challenges and crush all stereotypes. You have the power to change the world and when you do all this, you will find us cheering for and smiling proudly. Never be satisfied by only being identified as a beautiful young girl but rather be identified as being smarter, creative, hardworking and kind,” advised Prof Motaung.

Mr Yugen Naidoo, General Manager, Lenovo Southern Africa said they are grateful for being part of this project as it ties up perfectly with their company mission to create a world with “Smarter Technology for All”.

Speaking to the girls, Naidoo said: “You are special and thank you for being fully engaged and creating these amazing projects. A very special thank you to the coaches (IT students) that gave their time, patience and most of all guidance and valuable lessons to the girls. During the programme, the DUT and Lenovo team were hard at work feeding Old Age homes and the homeless. Over 1000 meals were handmade and served, as well as helping the environment by plating trees to lessen carbon emission. It is all our responsibility to ensure that we take care of Mother Earth.”

The Project Leader, DUT Information Technology Senior Lecturer, Mr Ebrahim Asmal began by announcing the 15 participating schools namely: Durban Girls Secondary, Sastri College, Woodview Secondary School, JG Zuma High School, Al Falaah College, Centenary Secondary, Westville Girls High, Brettonwood High School, Lakehaven Secondary School, Phambili High School, Park Hill Secondary School, Sithengile Secondary, Verulam Islamia, Havenpark Secondary and St Monicas High School. He expressed his gratitude to Lenovo Southern Africa for partnering with DUT and thanked the participants for their hard work and dedication, not forgetting the DUT and Lenovo teams who went the extra mile to make the event a success.

This programme is set to continue for the next three years due to the Memorandum of Understanding signed by DUT and Lenovo.

Pictured: The Robo Girl 2022 winners, Havenpark Secondary in collaboration with St Monica’s.

Simangele Zuma