Cape Town: City’s Hackathon has decided to digitize the business license application process. The Innovation and Customer Insights team of the City of Cape Town in collaboration with the Business Applications team wrapped up its Business License Innovation Hackathon on Thursday, June 19, 2025.
The event was observed to commemorate Youth Month and included 20 Information Systems and Technology (IS&T) interns who showcased their coding talent. They worked on developing a self-service business licensing portal that aims to reduce the workload of Environmental Health officers who currently handle submissions manually.
Reportedly, the 24-hour Hackathon was a joint effort between the Corporate Services of the City of Cape Town, Future Planning and Resilience, Economic Growth and Community Services and Health directorates. Design by the winning team will be presented to the Environmental Health Department of the City of Cape Town for support and full development.
Executive Director of the City of Cape Town for Community Services and Health – Zukiswa Mandlana said that they are quite excited about the product which will come out of this hackathon.
The Environmental Health Department of the city is responsible for business license processing and a self-service portal that will provide an efficient and easy-to-use alternative. One of the things they are looking for is to improve the client’s experience. Most of the processes are paper-based, and they are quite keen to move on to electric formats.
The evaluation panel, that consisted of selected stakeholders from the City of Cape Town, ranked Vuyolwethu Ngqina, Sandisiwe Mvandaba, Lauren Chawula, Lungelo Tom and Daniel Wood as the winning team with their ‘Team Charmaine’ mobile portal pitch.
The team presented an easy-to-use mobile site that streamlines the business application process, integrates Geo-spatial information System and Land Use Management zoning data to guide customers on whether their current land-use rights permit their intended business operations.
Considering this, Member of the Mayoral Committee for Corporate Services – Alderman Theresa Uys said that the challenge statement was posed to the IS&T Business Applications interns was ‘How can the City create a self-service portal for Business License applicants that streamlines the application process and reduces the workload on Environmental Health service clerks?’
Theresa Uys said that she is proud to say that the young developers were not disappointed with their ideas. A lot of ideas were shared, and they were able to pick one for further development.
Further, the city provides services to 4.7 million people, and they must work hard to ensure a better and easier customer experience for all.