Ubinufu and MTN Foundation have sealed a new partnership to skill ICT talent in Uganda. The Youth empowerment skilling program will run under the Yello telco’s foundation arm with a target of atleast 100 youth in preparation for the fast-paced digital world.
As a new partner set to skill talent under the program, Ubinufu will extend its well-known niche in professional mobile and web development to nurture youth.
The company is a software development firm based in Uganda, and has for long delivered innovative, personalized, and fully functional solutions to deliver client value and satisfaction.
Well, the youth skilling program will focus on ICT skills that will drive the co-creation of innovative digital products and solutions to solve community problems in education, youth empowerment, health, and agriculture sectors.
With ICT built on foundations of problem-solving, the program comes in a timeframe where the COVID19 Pandemic has demonstrated immense need for digitalized systems in-order for businesses and communities to continue operations with the new normal.
Currently, youth under the age of 25 account for 77% of Uganda’s total population with a majority of them unemployed. And So, the new youth skilling program targets youth in SMEs, University and enthusiasts who would prefer to innovate in their respective communities using technology.
During the Program launch yesterday, Wim Vanhelleuptte, the MTN Uganda Chief Executive Officer marked the program as one of the many initiatives that the telco has put in place to enable youth tap into the limitless possibilities of the 4th Industrial revolution.
“Since they are the majority, the youth are a big and essential component in the country’s growth and development. That is why we as MTN have chosen to involve them to stimulate local innovation, which in turn will help youth create gainful employment opportunities through community transforming innovations as we enter the new era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution,”
said Wim Vanhelleputte
Additionally, Brian Ssennoga – the team lead at Ubunifu systems commended the Yello camp for starting the initiative of skilling ICT talent in Uganda, and confirmed that the skills program will be transformational.
“This is a great initiative, we a thankful to be partnering on with MTN on this great initiative. The program will powersport a new way to innovate especially the commitment to prioritize Digital for Good and access to ICT for Good Knowledge. This program will tailor to a diverse youthful audience providing them with knowledge, skills, and experiences to support building collaborative local solutions that align to the Foundation’s work in Uganda.”
Said Brian Ssennoga the Team lead Ubunifu systems.
In light of the program’s runtime period, MTN Uganda targets 100 beneficiaries with a mission of inspiring and empowering them towards harnessing practical application of innovative ICT solutions in their communities.
Just like the campaign’s previous campaigns including the Open API challenge that saw startup owners dash with millions in prizes, the telco will invite applications from youthful innovators with training scheduled to start next year.
Henceforth, qualifying participants will receive free training to develop solutions, then, a prize pool will be awarded to the best solutions as a signal of encouraging the growth of their solutions across several communities in Uganda.