01/09/2026
What if graduation is not the finish line, but the starting point? On Thursday, 20 August 2026, the Digital Skills for Jobs and Income II (DS4JI II) project, together with German Embassy and The Department of Communications and Digital Technologies (DCDT), joined Tshimologong Digital Innovation Precinct to celebrate young South Africans graduating from the Gamification Training Programme.
The programme is part of the job-oriented career path measures supported through the DS4JI II project, implemented by Tshimologong in partnership with University of the Witwatersrand, MindCiti and Digital Creative Industries ecosystem to equip unemployed youth with market-ready gamification skills.
The programme boasts 70% female participation and included gender support to strengthen access, retention and success. Through gender workshops, graduates examined representation in the gaming industry, explored cultural diversity, harassment and safety in digital spaces.
The message was clear: the digital spaces we create can either reproduce exclusion or help create something better: Women must claim their space in the Gamification industry
Post graduation the beneficiaries would be assisted by Tshimologong to gain valuable work experience in their innovative โSandboxโ model.
As Rixa von Somnitz-Moreno, Development Cooperation at the German Embassy, reminded graduates and partners that impact cannot only be measured in frameworks, policies and numbers โ it can be seen it in the people standing in the room.
Tshimologong CEO, Mark Harris, reminded the graduates, โGamification Training Programme is never simply about learning how to make games, it is about using digital tools to create possibilities in a changing economyโ.
With Africa still holding a relatively small share of the global gaming economy, therein lies opportunity for young African creators to move from being consumers to becoming developers, storytellers, freelancers, entrepreneurs, and owners of intellectual property.
The DS4JI II Team encourages the graduates to keep learning, keep building, stay connected. Build the portfolio. Create the opportunity. Tell the African story. Shape the digital economy.
Congratulations to the graduates!
The Digital Skills for Jobs and Income project is implemented by the Deutsche Gesellschaft fรผr Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), in cooperation with the Department of Communications and Digital Technologies (DCDT).
Wits - University of the Witwatersrand Wits Digital Arts Deutsche Gesellschaft fรผr Internationale Zusammenarbeit
