The County Government of Kisumu has launched an ambitious digital training program that will offer jobs to hundreds of young people in a major push to transform Kenya’s Information Technology transformation agenda.
Kisumu Governor, Prof. Peter Anyang’ Nyong’o unveiled the program today as he ushered in the first Cohort of 96 trainees from across Kenya in the Zone 01 Kisumu, a project that offers a unique software tuition-free training to the youth.
Speaking at the Lake Basin Mall in Mamboleo, Prof Nyong’o said Zone 01 Kisumu, was a creative project and innovative partnership between the County Government of Kisumu, Lake Hub, 01 Talent Africa and the United Cities and Local Governments of Africa (UCLGA).
There was song and dance as the trainees embarked on a new journey that will see them train for two years at the Zone 01 Hub in Kisumu for two years for free. They will then get a 5-year job contracts.
“Because of their commitment to this project, we will train them for free for 2 years at the Zone 01 Hub before releasing them to the job market,” said Prof Nyong’o.
He added: “Today, these young people are starting their journey to become mobile Web App developers, data engineers, Artificial Intelligence experts, video game developers, block chain and cyber security engineers.”
Prof Nyong’o said the recruitment and training program had been very competitive, with some 13,000 young people applying for the training at the lake Basin Mall. “The Hub interviewed 420 applicants and selected 96,” he disclosed”
The Governor, who was accompanied by the Secretary for e-government and Digital economy in the national Ministry of ICT, Ms Mary Kerema, said the project’s main aim was to build a world-class competencies among the youth and prepare them for immense opportunities in this field.
He thanked the team that has been driving implementation of the project. These included the Directorate of ICT, the Lake Hub technocrats, the Zone 01 Kisumu trainers and the tech-savvy youths who braved weeks of energy sapping and tough training to qualify to this stage.
“As a county government, we have set up a Zone 01 Hub at the Kisumu Rotary Vocational Training Centre. We have provided fifty (50) computers and a Local Area Network (LAN) infrastructure. We have also availed chairs and desks for eighty (80) students,” said the Governor.
He added that in addition, Konza Technopolis has agreed to donate 20 desktop Computers to this project.
“We have no doubt that this program will change the fortunes of our youth because ICT now controls all aspects of life, providing newer, better, and quicker ways for people to interact, network, seek help, gain access to information, and learn,” said Prof Nyong’o.
He said that to streamline ICT operations and e-governance in Kisumu County, the Department of Finance is currently finalizing the County ICT Policy to respond to the dynamic ICT world.
He explained that the Kisumu County Government, in partnership with the Safaricom PLC launched the Integrated County Revenue Management System (ICRMS) to optimize revenue collection and enhance the much-needed Own Source Revenues (OSR) to finance our development programs
Ms Kerema praised the training program, saying it will go beyond empowering the youth with skills to leverage on employment opportunities but will offer the youths the opportunities to network and engage with established firms in the industry.
She urged other Counties to benchmark with Kisumu on the ICT projects.
The function was also attended by officials of the Zone 01 Talent officials David Sultan and Nicholas Sadirac who praised their partnership with Kisumu County.
Others present included the Kisumu Executive Committee Members- George Okong’o (Finance, Economic Planning and e Government), Farida Salim (Trade and Tourism) Ken Onyango (Agriculture, Irrigation, Livestock and Fisheries) and James Odede of Kisumu Digital Hub. Mr Odede is also a member of the Kisumu Economic and Social Council (KECOSOC).
The Zone 01 Kisumu has a vision to recode the world with talent. Its Mission is to unearth new pools of digital talent and give them the best education that will transform them into the world’s best coders and deploy them to top technical jobs.
There were exciting moments during the launch as pupils from Migosi primary school- entertained guests with their now popular Lingala and Benga songs.