Huawei to invest N80m on Africa youth empowerment

Huawei, an information and communications technology (ICT) solutions provider, said it would invest N80 million for young talents cultivation and empowerment in Nigeria’s ICT industry.

The announcement was made weekend during the celebrations of the 2014 Nelson Mandela International Day in Abuja.

Speaking at the event, the Deputy Managing Director of Huawei Abuja office, Mr. Osita Iweze, said N4 million will be provided to the Nelson Mandela Institution (NMI) to give to its affiliate, the African University of Science and Technology (AUST), Abuja, as scholarships for students.

“The amounts of these scholarship funds and the manner in which they are administered will be mutually agreed upon for each academic year or programme,” he said.

ICT equipment worth the sum of 76 million Naira will also be provided by Huawei to AUST.

He said: “AUST will invite Huawei engineers and researchers to organise workshops or specific classes to the students. Bridging digital divide is Huawei’s global strategy. Huawei has set up an ICT scholarship in University of Lagos since 2012. A 1,000 girls training programme with Federal Ministry of Communication Technology was launched in 2013 and about 500 girls have finished their training courses. In 2014 Huawei started expanding its investment on young ICT talents education and we are glad to work with AUST to ensure the graduates could be ICT industry leader in Nigeria and other Sub-Sahara African countries.”

Chief Executive Officer, NMI, Mr. Bonaventure Mbida-Essama, while appreciating Huawei, said: “The African University of Science and Technology (AUST) is the first of the Nelson Mandela Institutions (NMIs). Africa’s richest person Aliko Dangote has announced that he would step up his philanthropic works across Africa, starting from his home country Nigeria.

The announcement was contained in a statement from the Dangote Group, which has made whooping donations across Africa.

The statement said within two years only, the Dangote Group, through its foundation, has doled out about N30 billion in humanitarian gestures.

“This is including the Dangote Academy worth about a N1billion, through which manpower is developed across various disciplines” it said.

Only last month, the Dangote Cement, Ibese, through the Dangote