Kenyan students off to China for Huawei-sponsored study tour

Nine Kenyan university students will on Saturday depart for China to participate in a two-week internship program sponsored by technology giant Huawei.

Speaking at a send-off ceremony for the interns, the Principal Secretary in the Ministry of ICT, Victor Kyalo hailed partnership with Huawei to facilitate skills transfer for the youth.

"Provision of ICT skills to the young generation is in line with Kenya's digital transformation agenda. We look forward to a robust partnership with Huawei to bridge skills gap in the ICT sector," Kyalo said.

The nine students who will participate in the 2016 Huawei Seeds for the Future Internship program are drawn from leading Kenyan universities.

Kyalo noted that since its launch in 2014, Huawei Seeds for the Future program has provided a platform for Kenyan youth to hone their skills in ICT.

"We require a critical pool of highly skilled youth to support implementation of a national ICT master-plan. Their input in the rolling out of broadband infrastructure in rural areas is critical," said Kyalo.

The two-week intensive training program for Kenyan students will be conducted at the global headquarters of Huawei in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province.

After completing the two-week study tour in China, the students will also benefit from a two-month internship at Huawei offices in Kenya.

The CEO of Huawei in Kenya, Dean Yu said provision of high end ICT skills to the youth will boost their career prospects.

"The two weeks spent in China is an opportunity for these top students to study and gain work experience as well as exposure required to fit in a globalized business environment," he said.

He added that Huawei aims to support training of 100 Kenyan youth in high end ICT courses by 2017.

Huawei has partnered with Kenya's ICT authority to implement its flagship Seeds for the Future Program that aims to develop local ICT talent through training, mentorship and technology transfer. Endit