Mandela University alumnus among the Top 10 in the GradStar awards
Nelson Mandela University alumnus Anamandla Zweni was selected as one of the Top 10 recipients of the GradStar Awards in December 2025.
Mandela University LLB student Inathi Memka was also named among the Top 100 students.
The GradStar programme recognises South Africa’s most employable students based on leadership, adaptability, and problem-solving skills.
More than 7 000 students from 25 South African universities entered the awards and were narrowed from the Top 500 to the Top 100, and finally to the Top 10.
Anamandla completed a Diploma in IT (Software Development) at Mandela University in 2024.
He will also be graduating cum laude with a BTech/Advanced Diploma in ICT (Applications Development) from CPUT in April this year, and is currently studying for a Postgraduate Diploma in ICT (Artificial Intelligence & Data Science) at CPUT.
South African learn-to-code programme gets global recognition
A South African-developed coding programme called Tangible that teaches problem-solving through simple, fun games, and works with or without computers, has been accepted by the international UNICEF-led Learning Cabinet.
This places it alongside a small group of international education tools that have been independently assessed for safety and scalability for real learning impact.
Tangible was developed by the Department of Computing Sciences in the Faculty of Science at Nelson Mandela University and is being implemented globally by the not-for-profit Leva Foundation. https://tangible.levafoundation.org/
In the most popular Tangible game called Rangers, which is suitable for all learners from eight years upwards, the aim is to guide your ranger though an obstacle course to catch the rhino poachers. Each level presents a new challenge. At the same it teaches learners about the need for rhino conservation.
Another game called Juicy Gems, for Foundation Phase learners (five to nine years), has a farming theme. Two other games for eight years upwards are Speed Stars - a Formula 1 racing game - and Code Cup - a soccer game.
Tangible coding at Salt River High, Cape Town and Professor Jean Greyling engaging Asanga Busi - a visually-impaired learner in Gqeberha in a Tangeble coding game.
“Tangible’s selection by the Learning Cabinet followed a rigorous evaluation process that included academic impact studies,” says Professor Jean Greyling, Head of the Department of Computing Sciences at Nelson Mandela University, Gqeberha who has coordinated the Tangible coding project since inception.