Ashesi University, Methodist University and Pentecost University came together for the first ever Ashesi Code Fair held at the Ashesi University College Campus, Berekuso. This Code Fair was organized by Ashesi University and sponsored jointly by DreamOval Ltd and Google Ghana, and was aimed at challenging and exposing the programming skills of computer science students in tertiary institutions.
The challenge for the Code Fair was set by the DreamOval Team led by the Head of Engineering, Mr. Henry Sampson. All in all 8 teams (ranging from individuals to groups of 3) competed for the top prize of GH¢ 500. The contestants were given 3 hours to complete the task and though some dropped off along the way most stuck doggedly to their task to present their program solutions to the challenge at the 3 hour mark.
Scoring for the challenge was based on program effectiveness, readability, simplicity of code and timing. The judging period was for 40 minutes and during that time the teams from different schools were allowed to present some of their personal coding projects to the guests. The team from Pentecost University presented a self-developed accounting software usable by churches and other organizations, whilst other teams presented video games, an Internet browser, and a student from Ashesi presented an Intranet radio he had developed for fellow students.
The ‘Top Coder’ Award, with the bragging rights as the top programming team of the three institutions along with an award of GH¢500 went to the team of Daniel Nii Tettey Botchway and Albert Kofi Mensah-Ansah of Ashesi University College. The prize winners will be able to spend their winnings on DreamOval’s iWallet Internet Payment system for online shopping.
