Huawei accelerates digital skills in girls' learning institutions in Kenya

Chinese technology firm Huawei on Monday said that it would entrench computer education and digital skills training among girls' high schools and institutions of higher learning in Kenya.

Maureen Mwaniki, director for Women in Technology at Huawei Kenya, said that Huawei has partnered with Karatina University and St. Faustina Kerugoya Girls High school, both based in central Kenya, by carrying out a three-day digital skills awareness training through the Huawei Information Communication Technology (ICT) Academy.

"By doing so, Huawei was introducing and reinforcing the desire for computer and digital skills by girls who continue to be marginalized in this growing area of the economy," Mwaniki said in a statement issued in Nairobi, the Kenyan capital.

She revealed that the decision to invest in women's training was driven by the persistent gap in computer skills training observed, despite recent gains achieved in enlisting nearly 3,000 women to join ICT careers.

She said that Huawei remains committed to bridging the digital divide and cultivating local ICT talent through various training programs curated for university, college students, and public servants.

Juliet Macharia, an associate professor of Communication Studies at Karatina University, lauded Huawei's partnership and encouraged women and girls in universities studying and working in science technology engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields to participate in this venture, which will eventually lead to a rise in the percentage of women and girls in science.

Karanja Keru, principal of St. Faustina Kerugoya Girls High School, said that the exposure to ICT and the new computer equipment was sufficient to stir a desire among young girls to pursue computer studies and gain digital skills.