During the run-up to the ITWeb Security Summit 2019, an Ideathon will be held on 6 April, aimed at preparing participants of #SS19Hack, which will run alongside the event.

The Ideathon will consist of a full day of training and idea generation, and will be hosted in an environment that is creative and conducive to stimulating attendees' 'thinking mojos', says Tiyani Nghonyama, COO and CTO of Geekulcha.

The Ideathon will be powered by Snode Technologies, a supporter of the Hackathon since its inception in 2017. The Ideathon runs from 9am to 5pm at iClub in the Tshimologong Digital Precinct, at 41 Juta Street.

Industry leaders will be holding presentations and mentoring the participants throughout the day, including Ivan Regasek (CEO) of ITWeb, Doreen Mokoena from the .ZA Domain Name Authority, Steve Jump from Telkom, Solomon Bhala from PwC, Lee Annamalai from MapIT, Nithen Naidoo from Snode and Ridewaan Hanslo from the CSIR.

Participants will be also be mentored by experts from Micro Focus, PwC, MTN, the session leaders, and Bernard Mashala, who will lead the mentors in Kimberley.

As a host, the Tshimologong Digital Precinct's events and marketing manager, Kendal Makgamathe, says they are excited to be collaborating with ITWeb and Geekulcha. "We look forward to breaking down more barriers to entry into our industry. Hosting the Security Summit Ideathon that feeds into the #SS19 Hackathon allows us to actively support work that seeks to build up the digital and tech innovation ecosystem."

Says Regasek: "We are in our third year, and with support from the start of the many individuals in their capacities or on behalf of their organisations who continue to give their time, I do believe for the past two years we've managed to achieve an event where real thinking, coding and learning happens, although on a small scale.

"We are looking forward to putting it on a bigger stage this year, are very welcome for old and new supporters. We look forward to working with them for a shared purpose, and are hopeful of more support of such efforts all round and in years to come," he adds.

"Tshimologong Precinct, Dr Dwolatzki's dream of an African brain hub still to be fully realised, is one of the places that make me optimistic about the future, and we are thankful it is hosting us for the event. We are looking forward to an excellent agenda of speakers, dedication and inspired ideas from the young participants, and a fun day of learning in the heart of Johannesburg," concludes Regasek.

In addition, Northern Cape Geeks from Kimberley will attend both the Ideathon, as well as another hackathon in May, at Sol Plaatje University. Winners will then join SS19Hack in Sandton, running alongside the ITWeb Security Summit 2019. In addition, several of the sessions from the Johannesburg edition of Ideathon will be live-streamed to Kimberley.

Chairperson of the Geekulcha Student Society at Sol Plaatje University, Barrington Hulana, says he's excited about the Ideathon because it's another chance to assess and build tech capacity in the province.

Rodwyn Grewan, senior manager from DEDAT in the Knowledge and Innovation Economy sub-programme, has been leading these ICT programmes in the province since the inception of the NCDev Ecosystem. He says: "As the world becomes more digitally integrated, cyber security and cyber intelligence become of a greater concern. The challenges and opportunities are not only technical, but social as well. By contributing to support the technical skills, the Hackathon platform is also helping address the socio-technical system."

The programme will feature training session by industry leaders, a 'Capture The Flag' challenge walk-through by Snode, a pitch session and a prize-giving.

To register for the Ideathon, visit bit.ly/SS19Hack.