Gov’t expands staff training on digital skills to enhance digitization efforts

A total of 784 civil servants on Wednesday graduated after successfully completing a one-week ICT training organized by Huawei in collaboration with the ICT Authority. Among them were 514 non-technical staff and 270 technical staff coming from 100 public sector organizations including county governments, parastatals, and national government agencies countrywide.

The awards ceremony was graced by ICT Cabinet Secretary Joe Mucheru, Principal Secretary Jerome Ochieng and Huawei Kenya CEO, Will Meng.

At the ceremony, CS Mucheru noted the importance of investing in human capital and partnering with those at the forefront globally of technology to provide the content. Additionally, he commended Huawei for its input in building the country’s ICT infrastructure and empowering the country through ICT skills for youth.

“I wish to thank Huawei for working closely with the Ministry in developing this training program and for the many other projects we continue to collaborate in. You see that the need for technology is really growing in the country and in the region and we thank you that you have really partnered with us to ensure that we are able to deliver not only for our citizens but even for the businesses so that we can see the kind of growth that is required. We really hope that we continue to collaborate and work together with Huawei technologies and we look forward to a great future together,” said the CS.

The capacity building training was categorized into two cohorts, covering the technical and non-technical training. The technical training aimed at improving the participants’ knowledge on the latest cutting edge technologies including cloud, AI, IoT, big data, network security, digital economy, e-Government and smart cities among other ICT trends.

The non-technical training focused on basic knowledge on ICT transformation, cybersecurity and information security. Each trainee was required to complete coursework over a period of one week as well as particulate in live training and take an exam certifications.

Speaking during the graduation ceremony, CS Mucheru introduced the country’s Digital Economy Strategy, of which skills and values are one critical pillar.

“As a Government, we recognize that in addition to infrastructure development and maintenance, the development of skills for our citizens is of utmost importance and especially those of public servants. This is becoming more important than ever as the digital economy grows and the fourth industrial revolution comes upon us. We need to be able to take advantage of emerging technologies such as AI, distributed ledgers, cloud infrastructure, robotics, 5G and the internet of things to spur the socioeconomic growth of our country,” he added.

Huawei has previously conducted training programs to promote digital skills including the Ministry of ICT’s Ajira program and Presidential Digital Talent Program as well as the Huawei ICT Academy, Huawei ICT Competition, Seeds for the future Program, and Digitruck programme. Huawei also organizes frequent Job Fairs and runs a Graduate Trainee Programme.

“The civil servant training was one of the aspects of a multi-pronged capacity building partnership between Huawei and the Ministry of ICT and we will continue to expand this programme in the future”. He further added that “through the partnership we believe that we can make Kenya not only a leader in Africa, but globally. This, along with good ICT infrastructure and skills, can create jobs and provide efficient public services for every Kenyan citizen,” said Huawei Kenya CEO, Mr. Will Meng.

Certificates and trophies were awarded to trainees who showcased overall exemplary performance during the training.

Lily Mwendwa, an Assistant ICT Officer at the ICT Authority, claimed 1st place award for the technical training, and Bernard Munyiri Matu, a Senior ICT Officer at the Laikipia County Government, claimed 1st place for the non-technical training while Faith Asiko Wambulwa, an Assistant ICT Officer at ICT Authority claimed third place.