The county government of Kisumu has partnered with the United Cities and Local Government of Africa (UCLGA), 01 Talent Africa and LakeHub to host the first digital intelligence centre in the country.
Through the deal worth Ksh100 million, the facility will offer cutting edge digital training for thousands of youth from Western Kenya and beyond to complement the national government’s digital transformation agenda.
Speaking after signing the agreement in Kisumu, UCLGA Secretary General Jean Pierre Elong Mbassi said the initiative was in line with the organization’s strategic plan to accelerate digital transformation in local authorities across the continent.
Mbassi said the training to be offered by LakeHub and 01 Talent Africa will open up opportunities for youth who could not afford to enroll for the programmes.
He said the facility will produce local digital talent for Africa equipped with cutting edge skills in Information Technology (IT) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) to not only create employment opportunities but also beef up Africa’s digital space workforce to be at par with the developed world.
The Secretary General said Kisumu and the larger Nyanza and Western regions had a lot of talent adding that through the centre domiciled at the Kisumu County Business Incubation hub, other sub national governments across the continent were set to benchmark and learn from the centre.
Kisumu Governor Prof Anyang Nyong’o said the centre will act as a vehicle to accelerate development and at the same time position Kisumu as a business hub.
He lauded the partnership adding that the funds received will underwrite training costs for thousands of youth in the area and at the same time address the issue of unemployment.
01 Talent Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Deror Sultan said the programme targets to unleash the youth’s potential to contribute to the innovation and digital transformation in the world.
“By creating Zone 01 Centers of Collective Intelligence in partnership with local authorities, we offer African youth the opportunity to unleash their creative potential and lead the digital transformation of the continent,” he said.
Across the continent, he disclosed targets to train and employ one million youths by the year 2030.
LakeHub Director of Programs Dorcas Owino said the initiative would open up training opportunities for the youth to accelerate digital transformation.
“Through this initiative, digital training will no longer be a privilege. More youths from disadvantaged backgrounds will also benefit,” she said.
By Fredrick Odiero
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