By Zandile Mkwanazi, Founder and CEO of GirlCode

As the South African school calendar kicks into gear, the usual back-to-school buzz feels a little different, where amid the rush for school shoes and the covering of exercise books, parents are facing a new kind of pressure.

We see the headlines about Artificial Intelligence (AI) changing everything and we’ve all seen firsthand even in its simplest applications how much generative AI platforms like ChatGPT and Meta can do within seconds of prompting it. Naturally this might make a lot of parents wonder about (or even fear for) the security of their child’s future, even if they are pursuing STEM (science, technology, engineering, maths) subjects at school.

Through our work with over 5,800 GirlCoders across South African provinces in the last year alone, we have seen that coding and digital literacy are no longer extra-murals like swimming or chess. They have become the third foundation of a basic education that is just as vital as reading and writing. And in 2026 and beyond, our goal is no longer to teach skills that help the future workforce beat the machines, but instead teach them how to be the ones who lead them.

STEM skills still crucial for the future

For a long time, the attraction towards learning STEM skills was simple; learn to code so you can get a high-paying job in IT. But in the age of AI, this has evolved. Basic code can be generated by a prompt. What cannot be generated, however, is the logical muscle required to know what to ask for, how to check if it’s right and how to fix it when it breaks.

When a child learns to code, they are really learning how to think. They learn decomposition, which involves taking a massive, scary problem (like building an app or solving a complex math theorem) and breaking it down into small, bite-sized steps. Research confirms that this computational thinking significantly boosts performance in traditional subjects like English and Maths. This moves learners away from the "parrot-fashion" style of memorisation that has plagued our education system for decades toward active problem-solving.

Building resilience (and confidence) in the digital sandbox

In our South African context, confidence is often the biggest barrier to success. For many of our girls, stereotypes about who "belongs" in a lab or a tech hub start as early as Grade 1, but in bringing digital literacy into the foundation phase, we break those walls down before they get too high.

Our GirlCoders and anyone who has ever successfully fixed a tricky line of code can attest to feeling that "Aha!" moment give you. It does something to their confidence that a textbook never can, because they realise they have agency, and that resilience follows them from the computer lab to the netball court and, eventually, into the boardroom.

Not just for the girls: A call to all parents

While our name and heart remain GirlCode, the future doesn't have a gender, and the logic and critical thinking we teach are universal. This year, we are placing a strong emphasis on inclusivity, inviting parents of boys to enrol their sons in our programmes too. To truly bridge the digital divide in South Africa, we need every child, regardless of gender, speaking the language of the future.

We also know that for many South African families, the digital divide is really a financial one. Because of this we’ve worked hard to keep our participation fees at a manageable R256 per month, which is roughly the cost of a few takeaway meals, to ensure high-quality tech education isn't just for the elite. And for those families where things are particularly tight, our scholarship programme remains open. No child’s potential should be limited by the balance in a bank account.

What’s on the Horizon for 2026?

This year is set to be our most impactful yet. Beyond our regular clubs, our participants have the chance to join our entrepreneurship programmes, where we don't just teach them how to use technology, but how to build a business around it. We are also hard at work preparing for all of all of our annual initiatives like our Summit that will take place in Cape Town and Johannesburg and of course our much anticipated GirlCode Hackathon which will bring our students face-to-face with the innovators currently rewriting the rules of the African economy.

To the parents standing at the school gates this month, my advice is don’t look at technology as a threat to your child’s education, but as the ultimate toolkit. Our goal is to ensure that when the next generation of South Africans enters the workforce, they are the ones designing the tools of the future.