China helps Uganda build capacity to fast track development through ICT

KAMPALA — In Uganda, the search is on for the top 10 Information Communication Technology (ICT) university students who will be sent to China for skills transfer, a move the country says will fast track its development.

The 10 successful students will be the second lot to be sent to China under the Seeds for the Future, a program run by Huawei Technologies, a Chinese company.

Stanley Chyn, managing director of Huawei Technologies Uganda said late on Monday that the move is aimed at bridging the digital divide through knowledge transfer.

He said the 10 students from the various universities will gain skills in a global business environment.

These skills he argued would be applied back home when they return after their two weeks stay in China.

Frank Tumwebaze, Uganda's minister of ICT and National Guidance while officiating at the launch of the search said Uganda needs to learn a lot from China noting that ICT can fast track the country's development.

He said with help from China, Uganda has been able to construct the National Data Transmission Backbone Infrastructure and e-Government Infrastructure.

The project included the installation of Optical Fibre Cable.

Tumwebaze said the country would soon start an Innovation Fund whereby innovators in ICT would be facilitated to carryout innovations that would not only stop at expositions but also be consumed by the market.