Huawei Kenya in partnership with several business partners have collectively launched a graduate recruitment programs creating over 30 job and internship opportunities. The positions were unveiled during the Huawei ICT Job Fair that was held online on May 12th and graced by Ministry of ICT Innovation and Youth Affairs Cabinet Secretary, Joe Mucheru, Chief Administrative Secretary Maureen Mbaka, and Director for University Education and Research Darius Mogaka representing Ministry of Education, Principal Secretary Amb. Simon Nabukwesi in absentia amongst other industry stakeholders.
The pandemic has drastically changed our way of life, detrimentally impacting the global and local economy resulting in a spike in the levels of unemployment. However, technology has helped many, providing individuals and businesses with access to critical services, information and markets, and thus the sector has grown more than any other in the last 12 months. It is predicted to continue doing so in the future, contributing significantly to the country’s GDP and creating thousands of jobs. Huawei organized the job fair virtually for the second year running for employers to introduce their job openings to a pool of over 150 highly qualified ICT graduates to apply to.
Huawei’s partners that attended included MFI Technologies, China Telecom, and Eastra Solutions Limited, all seeking to hire promising graduates who have been trained by Huawei’s academic partners and achieved Huawei’s globally recognized certifications.
During his speech, Cabinet Secretary Joe Mucheru lauded Huawei for its collaborative effort forged with the government to build Kenya’s ICT infrastructure: “With programs such as the Huawei ICT Academy and Huawei Management Trainee Program, the ICT local talent and broader ecosystem will be boosted”. “Kenya’s rich human resource is an asset that sets it ahead regionally and moves us closer to becoming a knowledge-based economy,” he added.
Representing the Principal Secretary, Ministry of Education Amb. Simon Nabukwesi in absentia, Mr. Darius Mogaka, Director for University Education and Research, commended Huawei on his behalf for their efforts in fostering and growing Kenyan skills and talent. He also highlighted that as digital skills continue to evolve and become even more critical, we must continue to keep abreast, partnering with the private sector to make sure the relevant skills are developed and that other opportunities for learning or gaining experience are provided such as internships. “The Huawei Job Fair is an excellent initiative in providing various organizations present here today with a pool of qualified personnel to select from.” he added.
Will Meng, Huawei’s CEO spoke about the youth unemployment challenge facing the country: “with the evolving technology we need to make sure as employers, we keep transferring skills to lecturers and to students so they are prepared for these jobs.” Huawei is committed to investing in local ICT talent through full time employment, internships, and training programs and in supporting the government’s efforts in achieving the government’s Digital Economy Blueprint with its key pillars on digital government, digital business, infrastructure, innovation-driven entrepreneurship and digital skills.
“Dedication, perseverance, growing by reflection and customer-centricity are at the heart of everything we do.” Fiona Pan Huawei’s Deputy CEO highlighting Huawei’s core values. She also encouraged those present to adopt these values while urging more women to apply for the opportunities presented.
The Digital Economy Blueprint was launched by the government in 2019 to improve Kenya’s and the continents ability to leapfrog economic growth, and the Digital Economy Strategy is expected to be launched this year. Both documents highlight the need to train a range of Kenyans on digital skills, and note that a highly skilled digital workforce will be critical to actualizing the other pillars: starting digital businesses, building digital infrastructure, and developing e-government systems, amongst others. With the outbreak of COVID-19, it is now clearer than ever how important and how urgent it is to create the necessary skills amongst the workforce. As the world evolves into a digital economy, our education systems need to also evolve, not only providing digital skills, but taking advantage of digital technologies to teach, and integrate ICT into curricula covering all sectors of society.
Mr. Johnson Kinyua, Dean of Students Office of Career Services at the University of Nairobi spoke at the careers fair about the Huawei campus ambassador program, noting: “It has played a huge role in recruiting students to sign up for Huawei certifications, therefore, enhancing their competency and skills; this ensures that the students remain relevant and marketable.” He also commended Huawei for training over 5,000 university students during the pandemic and its collaboration with the Ajira program.
Huawei believes that Kenya must have a skilled workforce empowered and equipped to take up new opportunities that new and emerging technologies will present as we work towards achieving a digital economy. Through the Huawei ICT Academy, the organization has partnered with over 40 universities to provide students with training and certifications on new technologies such as 5G mobile networks, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT), and Cloud, hence improving their skillset and also their employability. Having operated in Kenya for over 20 years, Huawei has trained and employed thousands of employees directly and indirectly, and continues to invest in training and hiring at a large scale to be successful for the next 20 years in Kenya.
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