Dominique Adams

Dominique Adams is currently studying economics and management sciences through UNISA, but when South Africa’s first lockdown was enacted in response to Covid-19, he felt he needed to do something more than sit at home. Having long had an interest in tech, he started trying to teach himself how to code in Python. He made contact with the University of the Witwatersrand’s professor Bruce Mellado, hoping that the academic would help him connect with another coding student, but, instead, Mellado asked Adams to join his team as a volunteer.

“They were starting to do some research around Covid-19 and I became a part of the team doing an analysis on the virus and its effects on the South African economy,” he says. “I was collecting data, looking at countries with similar economies – the research was vital and had a direct effect on the lockdown levels.”