MCIT, Huawei launch 5th edition of ICT Competition to aspiring students across the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Al-hadth – Ahmed Bin Abdulqader

With digital technologies becoming the building blocks of Saudi Arabia’s intelligent society—Huawei has launched its flagship annual Huawei ICT Competition KSA in partnership with the Saudi Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT). The initiative supports socio-economic development by bolstering the overall ICT ecosystem through nurturing local talent who will be the future Saudi generation achieving the Kingdom’s national development plans and ambition in line with ‘Vision 2030’.
This year’s competition was launched during a ceremony held at MCIT’s headquarters and attended by H.E Eng. Haitham Alohli, Vice Minister of MCIT, H.E Mr. Chen Weiqing, the Chinese Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Mr. Xie Qinsheng, Minister Counselor of China’s embassy in Saudi Arabia, and Mr. Eric Yang, CEO of Saudi Huawei, in addition to other representatives from the ministry, Mawhiba, TVTC, and various universities.
From October to November, thousands of undergraduate students are expected to participate in the competition, which is being held virtually in compliance with social distancing measures. Winners of the regional competitions will receive a certification, future learning opportunities, a USD20,000 cash prize, and more.
Ms. Alanoud Alshwaier, General Manager of Knowledge and Digital Content, MCIT, said: “We are pleased to collaborate with Huawei for the fourth year in a row in organizing leading programs such as the Huawei ICT Competition, where the technical sector contributes to enhancing the Kingdom’s global competitiveness and driving economic development, and by collaborating with a world-leading technology company, we continue our commitment to empowering our young people and preparing the next generation of technology leaders in the Kingdom to contribute to the kingdom’s digital transformation.”
Mr. Steven Liu, Deputy CEO of Saudi Huawei, said: “Empowering the Kingdom’s youth with global knowledge and new skills plays a key role in the future of socio-economic growth. Huawei is committed to developing the ICT industry by investing in local young talent and creating an open, collaborative ecosystem. Moreover, by offering participants access to online learning, we can create equal opportunities for quality education, and ultimately enabling more people to effectively contribute to the development of the digital economy.”
The competition further promotes creativity amongst students by acting as a bridge between the classroom and the workforce, enhancing students’ future employment opportunities. The training courses and competition program this year focus on modern technologies such as fifth-generation, artificial intelligence, cloud computing, data storage, and enhancing communication between talented youth in the region. The competition is considered one of the auxiliary channels for the current efforts made by governments, universities, and educational institutions in the field of talent discovery and support to prepare future leaders who will be responsible for leading the development process by relying on technology.
In the past 4 years, over 8,500 undergraduate students across the Kingdom applied for the Huawei ICT Competition. Last year’s ICT Competition saw 6 Saudi tech talents head for the Huawei Middle East ICT Competition final, in which a Saudi team took home the ‘Best Popularity’ award.
Registration for the Huawei ICT Competition KSA 2021 is now open till 25th October 2021 through this website https://e.huawei.com/en/talent