Huawei Bridges Gap Between ICT Industry, Academia in Zimbabwe

By Xinhua 

September 27, 2023

China’s telecommunications giant Huawei is working on closing the gap between theory and practice in information and communications technology (ICT) education in Zimbabwe through initiatives aimed at developing robust ICT ecosystems in the country.

On Tuesday, Huawei held an ICT Career Expo at the University of Zimbabwe in the capital of Harare to familiarize students in ICT and other related fields to career opportunities available at the company and in the ICT sector at large.

Yang Shengwan, Huawei Zimbabwe’s managing director, said the company seeks to bridge the gap between industry and academia in Zimbabwe.

“There is a gap between education and industry, as the industry itself is developing very fast, and every year we can see there is new technology applied in the industry,” Yang told Xinhua after the event. “To remove that gap, Huawei is conducting these programs, including the ICT Academy, to provide a platform for students and teachers to get closer to the latest technology, to get a chance to be familiar with the latest technology.”

Besides availing career opportunities to Zimbabwean youth, Huawei also holds the Seeds for the Future Program — its flagship corporate social responsibility program which seeks to develop local ICT talent, enhance knowledge transfer and promote a greater understanding of the telecommunications sector among the youth.

In addition, Huawei supports Zimbabwe’s digital transformation through programs like the Huawei ICT Academy and Huawei ICT Competition.

Tinayeshe Kariwo, an Electrical and Electronics Engineering student at the University of Zimbabwe, and participant at the career expo, said the initiatives by Huawei provide local students with practical skills applicable to the real world.

“From my participation in this event, I learned that there are quite a number of job opportunities that I was not quite aware of that I can also pursue after completion of my program,” said Kariwo.

Another student from the University of Zimbabwe, Kupakwashe Makuvaza, a Medical Physics major, said the event was an eye opener, adding that his field of study can tremendously gain from working with Huawei.

“I think Huawei would greatly improve things in my sector of learning by applying themselves in Software Engineering and Artificial Intelligence and Radiation Oncology and Nuclear Medicine technologies,” Makuvaza said.

She hopes that the Huawei Seeds for the Future program will also be opened to other students outside the ICT field.

Idah Sithole-Niang, the dean of the Faculty of Science at the University of Zimbabwe, said Huawei’s initiatives empower students to be competitive in the industry. “It gives our students opportunities, it strengthens our partnerships. We endeavor to internationalize our programs, so such platforms are extremely ideal for such a purpose,” she said.

Sithole-Niang said the programs inform students so that they can be exposed to the opportunities that are available. “We have the Seeds for the Future program, and we have the ICT academy, and through those platforms, our students have been able to participate in global competitions, which is a plus for the University of Zimbabwe,” she said.