The 2024 Samsung Solve for Tomorrow school’s competition concluded with the announcement of the overall winner on Wednesday, 2 October at Aha Kopanong Hotel and Conferencing Centre in Benoni, Johannesburg. Among the dignitaries at the function was the Deputy Minister of Basic Education, Dr. Makgabo Mhaule.
Run in partnership with the State Information Technology Agency (SITA), Solve for Tomorrow gives Grade 10 and 11 learners from underserved communities a unique opportunity to learn, and apply themselves as they solve some of the challenges in their communities through the practical application of Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM). In this process and as intended by the competition, the learners get the level of exposure that shows them their areas of interest, while also gaining invaluable experience and skills that help harness their path toward a career in the STEM fields.
Mandisa Shiceka High School, from Krugersdorp in Gauteng, took the honours and was awarded a R100 000 cash prize, while second-placed, Mbilwi Secondary received R50 000, and Adam’s College got R30 000 for third place. All the cash prizes will go towards purchasing STEM equipment for each school, according to their various unique needs. Samsung placed the cherry on top by rewarding each learner from the top three teams with a new Samsung Galaxy device.
To emerge victorious, the learners of Mandisa developed an automated hydroponic structure that grows food without using soil. They identified food security as their main community challenge, because their township, Kagiso, is predominantly a mining environment. This affects the quality of the soil, air and water, all resources necessary for growing healthy food. To mitigate this, their innovative system would use greenhouses as well as rain water and boreholes as their source of water.
“We came into the competition with a strong belief that we would win because we believe in our idea as a great solution – that’s the attitude that the entire team carried until the end. We’d love to thank Samsung for the opportunity to improve our community and learn some valuable skills,” said Makhosazana Mazibuko, team member and grade 10 learner.
Samsung Solve for Tomorrow is one of Samsung’s corporate social investment initiatives and an ambitious effort to increase interest and proficiency in STEM, and help the country contribute to the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Innovative thinking, creative problem-solving, and teamwork form part of what the competition seeks to encourage among the learners as they learn important skills that could benefit them in their future careers, as well as make a positive impact in their communities.
