Huawei Kenya Kicks-off 2020’s Seeds For The Future Program Virtually

Huawei Kenya kicked off the seventh cohort of students participating in the global Seeds for the Future program. The flagship program started globally in 2008 and has benefitted almost 200 students in Kenya since 2014.

CS ICT, Innovation and Youth Affairs, Joe Mucheru, and Ambassador Zhou Pingjian gave keynote speeches to the students and commended Huawei for the highly relevant content, contribution to developing ICT talent, and supporting the development of Kenya’s Digital Economy.

The program aims to develop skilled, local ICT talent and bridge communication between countries and cultures. By sharing ICT expertise and experiences in the global business environment, young people from different countries can learn about advanced technologies in the ICT industry and accumulate ICT expertise and skills through the Seeds for the Future program, contributing to the progress of the global ICT industry.

This year’s program will be held virtually for the first time providing a 5-day intensive training with more than 20 mandatory and elective courses offering 60 participants from around the country training in technology fields, including 5G, Big Data, Artificial Intelligence, Cloud Computing to empower students to understand the latest technology trends to equip them in today’s job market.

At the launch event, Huawei Kenya CEO Mr. Will Meng stated in his opening remarks: “We truly believe that talent is the key to success. It is why we invest so much in supporting Kenyan ICT talent which will not only drive the ICT industry but power every other industry. We hope these students will go on to play a significant role in this wonderful country’s development and drive forwards the Digital Economy”.

According to the recently released draft Digital Economy Strategy for Kenya, Digital Skills are a critical part of the country’s efforts to grow the digital economy. Across the ICT ecosystem, there is an urgent need for large numbers of technical staff who can address the challenges posed by this transformation and help the country take advantage of new technologies. The Ministry of ICT, Innovation, and Youth Affairs has worked closely with Huawei for several years to implement the Seeds for the Future program as well as other initiatives related to digital skills.