Because man is not an island……….

Being a tech worker in Zimbabwe is a daunting task. Whether you’re a developer, enterprise worker, IT or networking expert , graphic designer or that university student trying to figure out exactly where they want to work(or can get a job to begin with), you often work in a field that your country frankly doesn’t really understand yet (including your local customers). This often leaves many of us feeling a little misunderstood, exploited sometimes and more likely just…alone as far as having vibrant networks and communities to work with. Thankfully, these tech based groups and communities are here to give you the right kind of support, networks and opportunities to gain a leg up in the tech industry, local and even international(especially considering some of them are backed by some the biggest tech companies in the world). So without further ado, here the best developer groups and tech communities for you to join in Zimbabwe.

Google-Based Developer communities

Google Developer Groups Harare – Meetup Link| Twitter

This Google backed Dev community (Yes, that Google) has been operating in Zimbabwe (not just Harare) for quite some time. Started by some eager tech students, GDG has gone on to hold multiple impactful events and initiatives that link many developers of all ages to the right careers, people and opportunities to help them make it in their professional life. Their online presence is mainly through a Meetup page and the social media handles we have highlighted above and the best part about signing up for GDG is you can do it yourself through Google’s own signup portal. Add to that the fact that being a GDG member can tend to come with some perks from Google themselves such as free developer resources or invites to webinars or certification courses and you know you’ve got the opening to make some pretty big leaps if you want to develop within or with tools from Google’s ecosystem.

Google Developer Student Clubs. Twitter(HIT)| Facebook(HIT)| Meetup(HIT).

Sort of a younger brother to the larger GDG community, Google Developer Student Club (DSC) initiatives are University based communities that work on empowering student developers. They often carry out similar functions to the main GDG community though sometimes with a few more perks because, you know, students (funds tend to be low). So far three have started mainly in Harare with the first one being at the Harare Institute of Technology and two other siblings coming from The University of Zimbabwe and Women’s University of Africa. We’ll leave details to their social Media handles and ways to get in touch with any of the clubs. We know they are especially interested in expanding DSC to other schools so if you think your University could use a DSC club, be sure to get in touch with them.

Google Women Techmakers. Meetup

The most recent of Google’s developer communities in Zim, this vibrant new community of innovative and tech savvy ladies has been crafted largely with the focus on introducing and empowering more women in the world of tech as well as giving them a safe, tolerant and accepting place whre they can all strive to reach their goals even while facing challenges or issues unique to women. It’s also honestly just a really fun and smart group of women that male or female, you might want to check out.

Forloop Zimbabwe- Twitter| Facebook

This Independent group of developers doesn’t exactly have one big company behind it but don’t let that fool you into thinking it’s reach doesn’t go wide. Forloop Zimbabwe is part of Forloop Africa a continent spanning community of all kinds of tech workers from back-end devs to freelance graphic designers. The community itself is built around uplifting developers of all races, genders and walks of life to become the best versions of themselves whilst among like-minded and driven people. Forloop Zimbabwe itself has had another event in Bulawayo about a week ago, and we can’t wait for the next one.

Facebook Developer Circles. – Facebook

Like Google, Facebook knows that for its products to have a bigger impact in developing communities, it needs local developers and tech experts dedicating their time to its platforms as well. Hence, Facebook Developer Circles Harare has been a vibrant local group with a huge number of developers meeting, collaborating online and starting projects both within Facebook’s platforms and beyond that. Facebook’s own Dev circle pages and blog often bring up interesting webinars, challenges and opportunities that include real money as a prize too! Even if you’re not really a fan of everything Facebook does and makes, you might want to see what happens in Dev circles and have a blast with that too.

WordPress Harare- Meetup

WordPress is one of the most widely used and much loved content managers on the web today, singlehandedly being responsible for either starting or enhancing the journeys of many web developers both here in Zim and beyond. The Harare WordPress Group describes themselves as “a group of local WordPress developers, designers, and publishers who get together to share our knowledge and experience, and to meet other WordPress users in the area.”. It’s kind of hard to really describe them beyond that, and if you use WordPress, or want to know how it could help you as a business person, writer/blogger, online influencer or anyone who wants to easily have their own website, you should definitely give these guys a call and join up.

And that’s our roundup of some of the best tech communities Zim has to offer. We’re quite sure there’s a lot more and if you think there’s a group doing awesome work that we should check out please let us know in the comments or on social media so we can look them up. Otherwise, stay here for more tech pro tips.

Related Posts: