The Tshimologong Digital Innovation Precinct in Braamfontein, Johannesburg, is providing wide-ranging opportunities for South African youth to access the necessary tools, technical training, and business support to pioneer the African games and animation industry and compete on the global market.
As the global gaming industry’s revenue soars to over $180 billion per year (a staggering three times higher than movie revenue), young aspiring developers are establishing a thrilling entry point into this highly lucrative industry with specialised skills in coding, programming, game development, UX, and app development.
Launched in 2021 and supported by Agence Française de Développement (AFD) and the French Institute of South Africa (IFAS) under the umbrella of Wits University, Tshimologong has already notched up significant numbers. In 2022, 237 beneficiaries were assisted, of which 187 were youth, 103 were women, 204 were black African beneficiaries, and importantly, 50 jobs were created.
The programme’s focus is to offer impactful youth learnerships, internships, and entrepreneurial incubation programming in the digital creative industries. The name Tshimologong is a Tswana word that means ‘in the beginning’, an apt reference to its role of incubation.
Erika Denis, Creative Industries Expert, working with Expertise France at Tshimologong, says that the primary driver of this value-adding initiative is the high youth unemployment rate in South Africa, which is currently at about 62% and is a major concern for the South African economy as a whole.
“As we enter another Youth Month, stakeholders in the economy should be encouraged to place greater focus on creating opportunities for youth to enter the creative industries, which are a powerful platform for behavioural change and fostering innovation and economic growth,” says Denis. “Tshimologong is committed to investing in the leading lights of the digital creative industry. This industry has significant growth potential, according to our research. Our programmes, created out of this research, aim to attract African youth, with a strong focus on women, who are ready to start their careers in the industry in Africa.”
Denis notes that while the African gaming industry is small, it is evolving with growing interest from international markets. “The African economy is also in urgent need of creatives with digital skills and experience in developing these skills in the market.”
The incubation programmes equip young start-ups with the tools, training, and support they need. They also help start-ups establish themselves in the global market by providing them with the skills, knowledge, and support needed to launch and grow their businesses. The programmes aim to strengthen the African creative industries ecosystem and solidify the continent’s position in the global market.
Nicholas Nhundu, CFA, Investment Officer and Southern African Creative and Cultural Industry reference point for AFD, says the organisation is proud of its contribution towards growing digital innovation in the country. “AFD is involved in 108 countries, where it strives to help its partners meet Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by making a tangible difference towards a fairer and more sustainable world. Our commitment in South Africa should – especially during Youth Month – give youth access to the digital landscape, and empower them to use their new skillsets to make a name for themselves, locally and internationally.”
This Youth Month, Tshimologong is shining a light on the work and achievements of some of its most notable student successes.
Bokang Koatja from Johannesburg, started at Tshimologong as a teacher before attending a ‘train the trainer’ programme at Gobelins, the world leading animation school in Paris. He was selected to join Tshimologong’s Digital Lab Africa – DLA – with a personal animation project and was then selected for Master of Arts in Character Animation and Animated Filmmaking with a Netflix grant at Gobelins, a founding partner of the DLA. He is working with a French producer on his current project.
Xabiso Vili is also a DLA champion, as well as an author, performer, TEDx speaker, new media artist and social activist. He won the Digital Lab Africa Web Creation prize in 2019. Xabiso spent 2020 creating an XR poetry-audio-visual project called Re/Member Your Descendants, a digital art exhibition that examines how young South Africans relate to their ancestors and descendants. It exhibited at NewImages Festival at Forum Des Images in Paris in June 2021, along with a projection-mapping project titled Chosi Chosi, projected onto the Saint Eustache Church in Paris.
Lola Aikins pursued her studies in 2D animation at LISAA in France, driven by her passion for drawing and animating her own creations. She returned to South Africa in 2018 and became part of the inaugural class of the Mollo Animation Academy and Studio at Tshimologong as an intern. Lola then co-founded LOBA, a collective of six artists aiming to cultivate a stronger drawing culture in South Africa and inspire young people to pursue careers in animation. Lola secured funding from the National Film & Video Foundation and National Arts Council to develop her own short film, ‘Naledi,’ which she premiered at Comicon Africa 2022.
Anathi Hadebei, a visual artist from KwaZulu-Natal, joined Mollo Animation Academy and Studio in 2019, where he learnt how to digitise his art. Since his graduation, Anathi has contributed to projects such as the ‘Prokid Documentary’ on SABC 1 and music videos for Universal Music Group, as the lead artist. He was recently selected as one of the nine trailblazing artists in Johannesburg, supported by a sponsorship by Halls in their “Breathing Space 2.0” campaign.
Peter Mukucha has loved gaming since he was a child. He joined the Wits Digital Art course in 2018, and in 2019, he was on the winning team in the Tshimologong Digital Arts festival, Fak’ugesi gaming hackathon. He was also part of the winning team in the 2021 Fak’ugesi Hackathon, which gave him access to the 2022 Gaming Incubation programme where he started his own gaming company, Last Minute Digital. Under LMD his team won the 2023 MTN Ayoba Gaming Hackathonand he is currently part of the Digital Lab Africa as well as the Digitizing Africa Entrepreneur Program.
Nth Place Studio is a video game studio created by Tumi, Craig, Josh, and Kate, former students of Wits Digital Arts School. Their Ndebele-styled painting game won third place at the Fak’ugesi 2022 festival’s Game Jam, and earned the team a game development contract with Fak’ugesi and Telkom Future Makers. The win also gave them the opportunity to attend Africa Games Week in Cape Town in December 2022. There they triumphed in a competition hosted by Games for Change Africa, which secured them a trip to New York to represent Africa at the Games for Change Festival in July 2023.
“Tshimologong hosts multi-talented entrepreneurs, teachers, authors, artists, poets, activists and more, and is a melting pot of young creative minds with places to go. We encourage youth with a keen interest in the digital creative world to get in touch and apply for a place in our Innovation Hub,” concludes Denis.
For more Tshimologong success stories, visit: https://tshimologong.joburg/success-stories/
Photographer : Adam Heyns
Pic caption: Tshimologong’s Digital Lab Africa is one of the premier digital incubation programmes for animation, video games, extended reality (AR, VR) in Africa. The programme provides the requisite skills to learners to enter the digital market.
Photographer : Adam Heyns
Pic caption: South Africa has the fastest-growing gaming industry in Africa and the country’s most innovative gaming start-ups are focusing on profiting from the industry boom. The Tshimologong Incubation Hub targets mid-level to experienced game developers and supports them in developing either their new or existing video games.
About Agence Française de Développement (AFD):
AFD is a public financial institution and the main actor in France’s development policy. Established in South Africa in 1994, AFD Southern Africa works in many sectors – climate, biodiversity, education, urban development, health and governance – and supports the transition to a safer, more equitable and more sustainable world.
About Tshimologong Digital Innovation Precinct:
Setswana for “new beginnings”, Tshimologong is a digital innovation ecosystem in Braamfontein, Johannesburg, that propels entrepreneurship and grows the skills pipeline for the digital economy through collaboration with academia, corporates, government and entrepreneurs. We provide skills and on-the-job training for unemployed youth while accelerating the growth of digital enterprises at every stage of their business and create a pathway for students and entrepreneurs to showcase their work publicly and access commercial opportunities.
Website: www.tshimologong.joburg