Andries Bingani (20) currently in his final year studying for a computer science degree at the University of Witwatersrand together with his team won the CHPC (Center for High Performance Computing) cluster competition last year. He is a recipient of the Peermont bursary programme for the past two years.

A competition where participants are given a budget to build a super computer and then the judges run it against their benchmarks (a means of testing if it works).
Speaking about the competition he said, “It challenged me in a lot of different ways and required hard work, team work and good time management; Thankfully, these are some of the things he learnt he learnt through the guidance and support of the Peermont Education Trust.”

As a result of winning the competition, Bingani and his five teammates will now represent South African in an international competition, with similar rules, in Germany in July. 

And it was in preparation for this trip that the former Thuto Lesedi Secondary School learner and his fellow computer boffins went to Texas from January 29 to February 8.

Speaking about the trip Bingani said “It was amazing, a once in a lifetime experience that I will never forget. I learnt a lot during my trip. Apart from all the computer stuff, we went to all the famous restaurants in Texas, walked along the famous 4th Street, enjoyed the Texas beef and went to the capital building in Texas and learned all about the history of the people there.” 

“To top it all off we got to eat original Mexican food and although the Americans can't cook bacon and make milkshakes, the atmosphere was amazing. My favourite part though was visiting Houston and the Kennedy Space Centre,” added the Ekurhuleni youngster animatedly after returning from his first exciting trip out of the country.

All opportunities and experiences he may never have had if it hadn’t been for his Trust scholarship and the CHPC. “I mean, who would have thought that a person coming from a difficult background like mine would get a chance to visit countries that I only know from TV. I now understand what is meant by never let your background define you!