Considered as a pioneer on computer training in Mauritius since 1996 and having a network of more than 1,800 graduates in the field of information technology, Charles Telfair Education has once again brought together the future digital talents of tomorrow during the third edition of its annual hackathon, the Game of Code.
This year, the institution has chosen to place the tackle substance abuse, putting it at the heart of the competition. Themed, “Towards Recovery: Building Safer Communities”, the participants reflected on how technology can leverage in building safer communities and respond to one of the most worrying societal challenges of our time. To anchor the challenge in reality, the National Agency for Drug Control (NADC) has opened the session by elaborating on drug consumption in Mauritius and current issues in prevention and early detection.
On June 24, 54 teams of computer science students hailing from five higher education institutions in the country, such as Curtin Mauritius, the University of Mauritius, the University of Technology of Mauritius (UTM), Middlesex University Mauritius and Polytechnics Mauritius, were given a common challenge: imagine how technology can help detect, prevent and combat substance abuse. For twelve hours, the participants designed innovative solutions in the form of mobile applications, web platforms or alert systems.
On June 26, the teams defended their projects in front of a panel composed of more than 24 jury members from more than 19 companies and organizations in the information technology sector, offering participants a unique opportunity to present their work in front of key industry stakeholders.
The team Status 200, from Curtin Mauritius won the first prize of Rs 50,000, ahead of Dhruv and Friends and Backprop Pirates, both from Middlesex University, who respectively won the second prize of Rs 30,000 and the third prize of Rs 20,000.
According to the Head of the Faculty of Accounting, IT, Law and Finance at Charles Telfair Education Dr. Sarita Hardin-Ramanan, the Game of Code perfectly reflects the spirit of these trainings: “It is above all about bringing together students who share the same passion for code, computer science and creativity. But this competition also consists of placing them in an intense situation, so that they are able to fully mobilize their skills in the face of a concrete problem that concerns us all. It is a platform to learn, challenge yourself, but also benefit from the feedback of experts in the sector and create links with professionals, in order to enrich their learning experience and better prepare for the world of work”.
While the Executive Director at Charles Telfair Education Dr Jeremy Charoux the educational scope of the event: “The Game of Code embodies what we deeply believe: that higher education must train minds capable of acting on the world. What happens here in a few days summarizes what education should always be: rigor, creativity and the will to provide solutions to real challenges”.
This commitment is reflected, particularly in two specialized programs offered in partnership with Curtin Mauritius: the Bachelor of Commerce (Business Information Systems) and the Bachelor of Science (Information Technology), designed to combine technical expertise, analytical skills and practical experience, and thus meet the growing needs of a constantly evolving sector.
