TechPression

Tag: ICT

  • Nigerian digital bank Alat invites entries for ‘Re-imagine’ project to boost ICT talents

    Nigerian digital bank Alat invites entries for ‘Re-imagine’ project to boost ICT talents

    ALAT by Wema, Nigeria’s leading digital bank, has issued a call for entries for the 2023 edition of its hackathon event.

    This effort is a component of the Hackaholics 4.0 “Re-imagine” project, which seeks to identify and develop tech talent.

    This year’s edition aims to explore the boundless possibilities of emerging technologies while utilising its neo-bank proposal to significantly widen the student and youthful ecosystem, deepen the bank’s brand and position the brand to recruit and retain tech talent.

    Alat Hackaholics 4.0 event

    The Hackaholics programme is a youth-focused competition for entrepreneurs and innovators with game-changing tech-driven or tech-enabled concepts and products who want to develop and rapidly scale their enterprises.

    It is geared towards young Nigerians who use their coding, product curation, and pitching skills to solve major societal issues in several businesses.

    During the campaign, the bank intends to involve 10,000 tech entrepreneurs, produce 5,000 ideas, establish six pitch centres, and receive over one million visitors. This year, the winner will receive $10,000.

    Read also: Lagos Startup Expo holds in May 20 2023

    This year’s Hackaholics edition is expanding its scope and exploring other verticals, such as education, environment, civic tech, insurance, government technology, health, gender-based violence, fintech, financial inclusion, and entertainment, in order to cover more ground in regard to societal issues.

    “We want to encourage young minds who can build solutions beyond just naira and kobo; we want people who can solve real-world problems around civic-tech, gov-tech, converting gender-based violence, entertainment, and health, and this is why we chose the theme “Re-imagine,” said Solomon Ayodele, Head of Innovation at ALAT by Wema.

    Each centre will choose 40 teams, but only ten will pitch. Six universities will host this round of live pitches: Lagos State University, University of Benin, Babcock University, Nile University, Abuja, University of Abuja, and the Federal University of Technology, Akure.

    The finale will take place at the University of Lagos. In addition, a select group of participants will receive a two-day excursion to explore the operations of leading organisations in their solution vertical.

    How to apply

    The Hackaholics competition is open to any Nigerian youth who is currently working on a solution. This category comprises non-programmers and those without a Computer Science degree.

    Your solution, competition, target market, and the team must be summarised (a minimum of 3). Every interested applicant must have an ALAT account.

    Shortlisted applicants will be invited to the incubation session, which is sponsored by Amazon, Microsoft, Endeavour Africa, and others.

    Opportunities 

    These innovators and startup founders will benefit from the live pitches and incubation sessions, including:

    • Give funds to innovators and startup founders to establish and scale their solutions. 
    • Product development and integration will benefit from the hackathon. 
    • Teams and solutions will be highly visible. 
    • Give founders access. 
    • Provide founders with mentoring and guidance.  
    • Learn from industry leaders.

    A committee of industry experts will select the winners of the $7 million in cash prizes in the grand finale from the selected contenders’ unique ideas.

    The winner receives $3 million, the first runner-up receives $2 million, and the second runner-up receives $1 million. The first women-led startup receives $1 million.

  • Microsoft Set To Train 5 Million Nigerian Youths On ICT

    Microsoft Set To Train 5 Million Nigerian Youths On ICT

    The leading multinational computer technology firm Microsoft plans to train five million Nigerian youths in Information Technology, artificial intelligence and other skills.

    Microsoft’s Country Manager for Nigeria and Ghana, Mrs Ola Williams, made the disclosure during a dinner organised by Art of Technology (AOT) Lagos 4.0 with a theme: “Talent Acceleration and a Smarter Lagos.”

    During the event, where several people were given Awards and or cash gifts, Williams said Microsoft signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the federal government of Nigeria to train and empower young Nigerians with digital skills. These skills, she said, are a nationwide programme that would enable the participants to be actively involved in the digital economy.

    Read also: Microsoft Strengthens its Partnership with the African Development Bank

    Why Microsoft will select more Youths from Lagos than other states

    As regards the bulk of selected youths coming from Lagos, the Country Manager said the large population of the state informed the choice of shortlisting more youths from the mega city. She emphasised that no part of the nation would be sidelined from the training because trainers have been pooled from every part of the country.

    Williams stated, “Aside from the training, we are also in partnership with the federal government to provide airbag technology and provide people with Internet connectivity so that those who live in the rural areas would have access to the Internet and would be able to participate in the training.

    “We are working with the federal government to ensure that every youth takes part in the training. We are going to the six geopolitical zones of Nigeria and the Federal Capital Territory(FCT).

    “The MoU we signed with AOT, is basically to work with the Lagos State Government to digitalize the state and provide access to different technologies, artificial intelligence and empower Lagos State government employees with the right to modernize their working environment, also to ensure securing all their digital technology in the state, in line with the state Government aspiration to make it a digital state”.

    Earlier in his welcome address, the Special Adviser to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Science and Technology, Mr Olatunbosun Alake, said the meeting was all about AOT 4.0, one of the ecosystem bridges between policymakers and the ecosystem talents.

    According to her, “In 2019, when our administration came into being, we thought it was important to lay focus on science and technology. Hence my office was created and named Innovation and Technology. Since then, we have been trying to build bridges with ecosystems and cooperate with so many solutions across all sectors.

    “During that time, AOT was one of the places where values were traded. From AOT 4.0, we got the Lagos State Science and Technology Master Plan, which has seven pillars, such as infrastructure, talent, funding, advocacy and communication, policy, data access, and many more. We have been debating for the past two days about one of the pillars called “talent,” which is the foundation for all other pillars because, without talent, the ecosystem will not be able to produce value.

    “My focus is on what areas to explore with the ecosystem talents and how to reverse the “Japa” syndrome, and sadly, three out of five ICT experts in Nigeria are either planning to leave or have already left. We want to reverse the trend of “Japa,” and how do we regain our ecosystem to encourage talents from leaving? That is why we are giving awards to those who leverage on the talents we have in Lagos and those entities creating value in Nigeria and outside Nigeria.”

    Microsoft releases sign language functionality

    Winners of Eko Innovation Centre Share Experience

    One of the lucky winners in the competition by Eko Innovation Centre, Jane Ekeh, commended the administration, stating how impressed she is with what the Lagos State Government and the founder of the organization were doing to support the startups and bring talented youths out of joblessness. She said, “Lagos and Eko Innovation Centre are doing wonderfully well.”

    According to Ekeh, “with the memorandum of understanding signed today by the state and Microsoft, the sky will not be their limit but a stepping stone and pacesetter. I am happy because many people are going to be pulled out of poverty.

    “Lagos is a pacesetter, and I know that other states will soon key into the program. I would like the FG and other states to emulate the Lagos State Government and begin to pull people out of ignorance and poverty and begin to embrace digital training.

    “I want to advise the youths to keep trying and put themselves in competition; they may not know what will come out of it.” Today, my team is happy with the award given to us. I’d like to express my heartfelt gratitude to the Eko Innovation Center for “bringing us into the spotlight.”

    Another winner, Adedeni, whose team went home with N5 million reward, also praised the Lagos State Government and Eko Innovation Centre for their contributions to the society.”

    According to Adedeni, “Our company is interested in training teachers. We want to change the narrative. We want to discourage students from cramming but encourage them to be more critical and technical in handling issues.

    “We organize programs for students after school and during the holidays. It will take time to get it right in Nigeria, but we have to start. We use different concepts, including music, with our students. We discovered that training 500 teachers, who will then train other teachers and students, is the most effective way to impact students’ knowledge from school to school.”

    This Adedeni said will go a long way toward training thousands of people.

  • The ICT Skills Registry is Now Live in South Africa

    The ICT Skills Registry is Now Live in South Africa

    When discussing the future, it is important to bring up the Fourth Industrial Revolution(4IR), which is one of those few exceptions.

    However, in order for South Africa to have a prosperous digital future, it is necessary for to solve the ICT skills gap as well as the brain drain that seems to be an ongoing problem. ICT skills shortages were identified as the industry’s single most significant concern in 2020 by the Institute of Information Technology Professionals in South Africa (IITPSA) board members. This difficulty is expected to persist for the next 10 years.

    To help South Africans get into ICT leadership programs, the Internet Service Providers Association (ISPA), in partnership with the Wireless Access Providers Association of South Africa (WAPA) and the Wireless Application Service Providers Association (WASPA), has announced the launch of phase 1 of the ICT Skills Registry. This searchable database lists the profiles and skill sets of people who want to work in the ICT industry.

    Challenges Facing the South African ICT Sector

    Moira de Roche, the IITPSA Director and IFIP IP3 Chair, she said in a blog post that South Africa’s ICT sector is ‘alive and well’ and “We see a lot of innovators and entrepreneurs around 4IR technologies, and it is encouraging that some schools are now teaching subjects like robotics. Overall, the sector is in good shape,” she says. “However, we do need to do more to nurture talent and keep it in the country. ICT professionals are leaving South Africa, and one reason they do so is a crime. There is little the sector can do to change that, but organisations do need to be conscious of employees’ needs to develop their skills and not get left behind, and they need to reward them appropriately. 

    Read also: Teachers Embrace New Tech-Enabled Methods In Rwandan Primary Schools

    How will the ICT Skills Registry work?

    The Skills Registry is a sector-based project within the ICT industry associated with the National Skills Development Programme. Its primary objective is to provide a starting place for younger job seekers to receive skills development via internships or leadership.

    Aurora Vani, Chairperson of ISPA’s Social Development working group, affirmed that “It is a critical priority for South African ICT companies to nurture nascent talent in the sector now or risk a chronic lack of human capital constraining growth later on,” 

    Candidates who have already registered will have the ability to submit their curriculum vitae, offer an enticing motivation explaining their aptitude and experience, and go through a questionnaire to pick their ICT skills and interests. Companies that want to offer full-time jobs, internships, or learnerships can search the database based on a specific ICT application or job description. They will also be able to search based on a candidate’s location to find people who live close by.

    Ms Vani. added, “We are very excited to be launching this ICT skills development portal which provides potential employers with a simple and intuitive faceted search engine to locate nearby candidates matching their skills and demographic profile requirements. The Skills Registry will go a long way towards providing skills development and employment opportunities in the ICT sector,”.

    The National Digital Academy Opens in Benin Republic 

     

    How to Register for the ICT Skills Registry

    Applicants who have intermediate or advanced IT skills and experience and want to work in the ICT industry or continue their education through the Skills Registry’s internship or leadership programs but don’t have enough work experience can click HERE or visit: https://skillsregistry.org.za

  • Huawei’s Leap Programme to Upskill 100,000 Youths in Africa

    Huawei’s Leap Programme to Upskill 100,000 Youths in Africa

    Chinese tech giant Huawei has announced the launch of its LEAP digital skills development programme at the recent Huawei’s ICT Competition Awards Ceremony held on the 9th of April 2022. Leap, an acronym for — Leadership, Employability, Advancement and Possibilities — is set to impact more than 100,000 youths in Sub-Saharan Africa with advanced ICT skills within the next three years.

    The Leap programme fosters strong digital leadership and a skilled ICT workforce, builds a digital talent pool, and promotes digital literacy among African youths. The programme will include various activities spanning from ICT training and certification courses to government digital capacity building and ICT skills competitions.

     

    Read Also : Amazon Set to Launch AWS Local Zone Cloud Infrastructure in Kenya

     

    Leo Chen, Huawei Southern Africa President, stressed the importance of ICT skills transfer and talent development and underlined Huawei’s consistent emphasis on it. He said —

    “Digitisation is deeply rooted in people. Because we digitise for people and by people. When roots are deep, there is no need to fear the wind. Through the programme, we strive to cultivate more youth leaders in ICT, who can explore more possibilities for themselves, their families, community and ultimately their nations.”

    Huawei Digital Skills Advancement in Sub-Saharan Africa

    A study by World Bank on Digital Skills says over 230-million jobs in sub-Saharan Africa will require digital skills by 2030. According to Huawei, the pandemic has spurred digital adoption across Africa. This increases the demand for more digital skills and talent.

    The Huawei ICT Competition, 2021-2022, drew over 15 000 students from over 200 institutions and colleges across Sub-Saharan Africa. Nigerian and Kenyan teams took first place in the regional final out of 48 competing teams. The second place was won by teams from Uganda, Ghana, Nigeria, and Tanzania.

    “Huawei’s ICT Competition has provided students like me with a network of industry trainers, instructors, and learning tools, allowing us to obtain a competitive advantage and engage with other students on a global stage,” said Ashtone Onyango a member of the winning Kenyan team. “This is crucial for students as it not only helps them enhance their abilities but also increases their job market competitiveness.”

     

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    Over the past two decades, Huawei has invested in advancing ICT skills for more than 80,000 youths across sub-Saharan Africa. According to the company, it has helped increase youth employability and bridge the gender gap in the ICT industry in the region. Huawei is a sought-after employer in the region. In 2021, it was awarded the Top Employer seal by its subsidiaries in nine Sub-Saharan African nations.

    Speaking at the ceremony, Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, South African Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies said, “COVID-19 took us into the digital era, but we should not need a pandemic to do this for us in the future; we need to be deliberate and intentional to leapfrog our countries. We need innovation, we need to support local innovators, and we need to promote our own platforms throughout the continent to reach scale and develop our economies. We are only bigger when our market is bigger, and we must walk together.”

    Also present at the ceremony was Prof. Eliamani Sadoyeka, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education Science and Technology, Tanzania, stressing the importance of ICT.

    “ICT has given us almost equal access to knowledge. Once a young mind is connected, a girl from the village in Africa will have the same access to knowledge as a boy in Copenhagen,” he said.

    He also mentioned that Africa’s future is in the hands of its youth, urging students to take advantage of every learning opportunity available to them. He praised Huawei’s ICT Academy for providing young people with a platform and skills in cutting-edge technology and the opportunity to reach their full potential.

    Empowering African Youths to Solve Africa’s Problems

    According to Huawei, the Huawei ICT competition has developed into the largest of its type in Africa and around the world. It provides students with a global platform to demonstrate and practise their ICT knowledge and abilities. Over 80,000 African university students have registered for the competition in the last five years, with more than 20 teams competing in the global finals.

    A Top Performance Prize was awarded to the South African team that placed in the top ten of the Huawei Global Tech4Good Competition in 2021 for inventing an intrusion detection system that leverages wireless and cloud technology to combat rhino poaching.

    Siyabonga Shandu, who was part of the South Africa intrusion detection system team, remarked that — “My proudest moment was learning that out of the 117 teams from around the world who participated in the Tech4Good challenge, we were part of the top 10 and the only team from the African continent. This shows we have the capacity and capabilities to create, innovate and build real African solutions to African problems.”

    The LEAP programme, which will see more than 1,200 trainers facilitating 3,000 ICT courses, will be implemented due to the company’s investment to empower youths in the Sub-Saharan Africa region.

    It will also fund training centres, hardware installation bases, innovation hubs, mirror labs, and ICT academies, among other things. More than 300 universities and colleges in the region now have Huawei ICT academies.

    At the ceremony, Leo Chen urged for strong collaboration between government, industry, and academics at the ceremony to build an ecosystem from which everyone can contribute and benefit.

  • Libyan Team Were Impressive In Technology Competition

    Libyan Team Were Impressive In Technology Competition

    The Libyan Team (Binary Brains) has been awarded 3rd prize in Huawei’s first Tech4Good competition, according to the results of a popular online vote. This competition is a key part of Huawei’s flagship CSR program, Seeds for the Future 2021.

    Tech4Good Competition

    The Tech4Good Competition is a new project started in 2021 under Huawei’s flagship Seeds for the Future digital skill training program. Tech4Good asks students to identify a social issue and propose a technical solution for it based on the ICT skills they learn throughout the program. This competition is also designed to cultivate leadership and teamwork through practice and group competition.

    Seeds for the Future was launched in 2008 to develop skilled, local ICT talent and bridge communication gaps between countries and cultures. In it, young people from around the world study advanced ICT technologies and build real-world expertise and skills. The 2021 program had more than 3,500 participants from over 117 countries, bringing the total number of participants over the past 13 years to 120,000 students representing 139 countries and regions.

    Read Also: Ethiopia vows it won’t renege On Mobile Financial Services

    During her opening remarks at the award ceremony, Catherine Chen, Huawei’s Senior Vice President, Director of the Board, explained how this year’s program was a particular success, saying “The participation of Seeds for the Future program was record-breaking in 2021. Your feedback and love for this program have been truly heartwarming. Your generation’s passion and drive to learn never fail to impress me.”

    The first and second place was awarded to Thailand and Vietnam teams respectively, and Team Brazil Digital4People won the Audience Award with over 40,000 votes according to a popular online vote. There were a total of 79 submissions for the competition and more than 110,000 people participated in the final voting.

    The winners will have private consultation or coaching sessions with Huawei executives and managers, and be shortlisted to speak at international forums and other events.

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    Chen also spoke at length during the event about the program’s aim to foster unity and cooperation in a contentious international environment along with other social goals. She said, “In this year’s Seeds for the Future program, more than half of the participants from over 20 countries are women. Tech has no gender. A diverse, inclusive, and innovative world needs the perspectives and strength of women. We look forward to seeing more women participate in science and technology in the coming years.”

    About Huawei

    Founded in 1987, Huawei is a leading global provider of information and communications technology (ICT) infrastructure and smart devices. We have more than 197,000 employees, and we operate in more than 170 countries and regions, serving more than three billion people around the world.