iAccelerate welcomes 2026 intake of Cape Town pupils
A new crop of pupils havs been selected for the 2026 iAccelerate programme from schools across Cape Town, with learners coming from areas ranging from Parklands to Camps Bay.
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While most teenagers were out and about making the most of the December school holidays, a group of Cape Town pupils spent Friday dreaming big and thinking about the future.
They gathered in the city for an open day welcoming the 2026 intake of iAccelerate SA.
The entrepreneurship accelerator hosted its second open day, bringing together the new 2026 learners with pupils from the 2025 cohort, who completed the programme this year.
The aim was to give the incoming group a clear picture of how the programme works and what is expected of them.
iAccelerate SA is an entrepreneurship programme for high school learners.
It focuses on practical, real-world skills such as problem-solving, teamwork, and developing ideas, rather than traditional classroom learning.
Founder Rayhaan Survé said the open day was designed to connect past and future participants.
“Today is the iAccelerate open day and the whole purpose is to bring our alumni — the cohort that has just graduated — together with the cohort of tomorrow, which will be the 2026 group,” he said.
The 2026 intake will be the programme’s second cohort and will be larger than the first.
Up to 26 pupils have been selected from schools across Cape Town, with learners coming from areas ranging from Parklands to Camps Bay.
Survé said access was central to the programme’s mission.
iAccelerate SA is fully funded and free for students, covering meals, teaching, facilities and, where possible, transport.
“We provide everything for the students,” he said. “There shouldn’t be any barrier to entry.”
He said the programme is funded by himself and his family and described it as a personal project.
Survé said iAccelerate SA was created to address gaps in the school system when it comes to real-world learning.
“In the African school system, we don’t place enough emphasis on real-world application,” he said.
“Entrepreneurial thinking is something no one can take away from you once you’ve built it.”
Survé, 28, was born and raised in Cape Town and attended Bishops before studying entrepreneurship at Babson College in the US.
He later studied at the London School of Economics and completed an MBA at Oxford.
He said his parents, particularly his father, have been major influences on his approach to business and resilience.
Looking ahead, Survé said the focus is on strengthening the programme and expanding its reach, with plans to run more cohorts, expand to other cities and develop a programme for young adults interested in entrepreneurship full-time.
For now, he said, the goal is to give young people practical skills and confidence that will stay with them long after school.
iAccelerate SA assistant coordinator Iviwe Yeki said: "We are still a young organisation, but we are trying to create change and make an impact in the Western Cape.
"Our dream is to expand into the rest of SA.
"At the moment, we are only based in Cape Town.
"There is one person from London who has joined our team while on an internship."
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