Amazon

About Amazon in South Africa

Amazon is a global technology company best known for online retail and for Amazon Web Services, or AWS, its cloud computing arm. Its South African story starts earlier than many people expect. In 2004, a development centre opened in Cape Town, and local engineers there helped create the Elastic Compute Cloud service, which became a core part of AWS. The address on this page, in Observatory, Cape Town, reflects that local engineering base.

The company has grown its local footprint since then. AWS launched its Africa (Cape Town) infrastructure region in 2020, and Amazon.co.za opened to shoppers in May 2024. AWS has also announced a large multi-year investment commitment in South Africa, reported at about R30 billion.

How Amazon supports students

The main funding route is the AWS Skills Development Bursary. According to the StudyTrust, which administers it, the bursary covers tuition, residence or private accommodation, subsistence, stationery and books, and a personal computer. It is aimed at full-time students at selected South African universities. Both undergraduates and postgraduate students, such as Honours and Master's candidates, can apply.

Fields listed for the bursary include computer science, information technology, engineering, commerce and business science. Some listings also mention accounting, finance, and maths and science education. Awards are based on merit and financial need.

Beyond bursaries, AWS runs a free skills centre in Cape Town, the first of its kind outside the United States. It offers cloud training to anyone who wants to learn, and AWS has set a target of training 100 000 young South Africans in cloud skills. These courses are not a bursary, but they can help you build skills for a tech career.

Amazon also recruits interns and graduates in South Africa, and its Cape Town teams work on cloud infrastructure and software. Former AWS interns receive priority for the bursary, so an internship can be a stepping stone. If you do not yet meet the bursary marks, the free training can still help you show employers real, practical cloud skills.

What to know before applying

Applicants must be South African citizens with strong academic and leadership potential. Published criteria ask for at least 65% in Matric Mathematics and English, and a tertiary average above 65%. The programme gives priority to students with disabilities, graduates of LEAP Science and Maths Schools, and former AWS interns.

Applications go through the StudyTrust online platform. Recent rounds ran from about June to October, with at least one extension. However, dates and the list of partner universities change from year to year. Any work-back or internship terms are not stated in the public pages, so read the offer conditions carefully. Check the current round with StudyTrust before you apply.