The International Telecom Union (ITU) has praised Huawei Technologies, for driving innovation in Africa.
"With the vision of bridging the digital divide, Huawei has never ceased in driving innovation and development in the industry," said Andrew Rugege, Regional Director of the International Telecommunication Union, the regional office for Africa.
"Together, we can build a better connected Africa and I hope that Huawei can become partners with us to make this happen. It is not only a sponsor but also a potential future employer with 18 years’ of experience in Africa," said Rugege at the ICT day held at the headquarters of the African Union on Thursday.
Since 2016, the Chinese multinational company has been one of the main architects of the ICT sector in Ethiopia. "Huawei and ITU are long-term strategic partners and our cooperation and support will remain the same," a representative from Huawei said.
The Information Communications Technology (ICT) day, a United Nations endorsed initiative marked to highlight the need of more women in the IT sector, was held on Thursday, April 28th as part of the International Girl in ICT day.
Ethiopia has been observing and marking the worldwide held event for a number of years and to date, thousands of young women has taken part in more than 7,000 celebrations of international Girls in ICT day in 160 countries worldwide.
The gatherings included informative panels, discussions, networking opportunities, from leaders in the industry, potential mentors and representatives of companies and a slew-of-speakers including, the minister of Women and Children Affairs and the Minister of Communication and Information Technology.
An initiative of the UN Women, UNDP, the European Economic Commission for Africa and the African Union Commission, with the cooperation and support of Huawei Ethiopia, the gathering brought hundreds of local attendees as well as delegates from a number of African countries.
Keiso Matashane-Marite, social affairs officer at the UNECA was at the celebration and expressed the importance of the initiative and the day. "Today is a special day and it belongs to the girls," she said. "As ECA, we are happy to be highlighting the importance of why girls should be involved in ICT, raising awareness and encouraging our girls to consider careers in IT."
According to various reports, there is an increasingly marginalized African women populations in the IT and Science sectors, with most women still involved in informal labor intensive jobs across the continent.
