15 Kenyan students to participate in Huawei’s global digital skills contest

In a statement released in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, on Monday, the Chinese telecoms company, Huawei announced that fifteen young Kenyan students will take part in the seventh edition of the Huawei global ICT competition, which will be hosted in China later this year.

The 15 young people outperformed 4,500 other contestants in the national final to demonstrate their proficiency in digital literacy. They also represented Kenya in the African competition, where, according to Huawei, they placed among the top three of the continent’s 16 nations.

Since its inception in 2018, the Huawei digital skills competition has drawn 13,000 participants. This year’s competition saw more than 4,000 students sign up from more than 50 university and mid-level college partners, according to Huawei.

The 15 students received praise from Kenya’s Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi for their flawless proficiency in the use of digital technology, which is essential to the realisation of the nation’s socio-economic change.

“Your performance in the national final of the Huawei ICT Competition and in the regional final has made our country proud, whilst also showing that our strategies and investments in education, skills and digital technologies are paying off,” Mudavadi said.

In accordance with the National Digital Masterplan, whose implementation is in full swing, he said that the government plans to provide at least 10,000 adolescents with digital skills training each year.

Mudavadi added that Kenya’s efforts to create a strong digital superhighway are proceeding as planned and would involve spending on auxiliary infrastructure and retraining local youth.

According to Steven Zhang, deputy CEO for public relations at Huawei Kenya, the Chinese telecommunications company is dedicated to closing the digital divide in the nation by developing the skills of local youngsters.

“Our involvement in supporting the government to expand the country’s digital superhighway is born from our belief that it is important for Kenya to build world-class digital infrastructure,” Zhang said.

According to Zhang, Huawei plans to expand its collaboration with the government, academia, business, and civil society in order to build a thriving ICT talent ecosystem that will be essential to bringing about Kenya’s envisioned fourth industrial revolution.

According to the telecom company, more than 150,000 students from more than 2,000 colleges and institutions in 85 nations and territories have so far taken part in the Huawei ICT competition.