The Institute of Information Technology Professionals South Africa (IITPSA) will no longer sponsor the annual Computer Olympiad.
The programme was a key development initiative to uplift youth ICT talent and compete on a global scale.
The South African Computer Olympiad is an annual programming competition for high school students that aims to identify and encourage programming talent, while promoting computer studies at school and university level.
It includes the annual Talent Search, Programming Olympiad, Applications Olympiad, and a programming team that would be sent to the International Olympiad in Informatics each year.
Launched in 1984, the Computer Olympiad is among the largest and longest-running programmes of its kind in the world, with up to 30 000 learners and students participating in the various Olympiad initiatives each year, according to the IITPSA.
The IITPSA has been the main sponsor of the Computer Olympiad since 2021.
Pearl Pasi, IITPSA president, notes: “The decision to terminate our involvement with the Computer Olympiad was not taken lightly. Unfortunately, the costs of running the Computer Olympiad have risen substantially in recent years, and it has become unsustainable for the institute to carry these costs alone.
“Although the IITPSA recognises that the programme is valuable, it is no longer viable for us to continue due to a lack of consistent industry sponsorship.”
Pasi thanks the various industry sponsors and stakeholders that have supported the Computer Olympiad over the years.
"While we are saddened at having to stop running the Computer Olympiad, we are proud to note that we have positively impacted tens of thousands of young South Africans through the programme, exposing them to new skills and opportunities within the ICT sector," she says.
“The IITPSA remains committed to education and youth empowerment and will continue to drive youth-focused initiatives, such as school and university outreach programmes, subsidised student membership, teacher training workshops and support of student IITPSA chapters.”
The IITPSA says is open to receive and evaluate formal proposals from interested parties with the appropriate capacity to restore the programme in the future.
Enquiries can be sent to kelvin@iitpsa.org.za.
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