ACWICT Executive Director Ms. Constantine Obuya (left) with ISBI executive

The African Centre for Women, Information and Communications Technology (ACWICT) achieved yet another milestone by entering into a partnership with electronics maker Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd and the International Youth Foundation (IYF), on 27th January, 2009.

This was announced during a media launch held at the Go Down Art Centre in Nairobi’s Industrial area.

The partnership seeks to implement a one year employability program “Real Dreams” through equipping youth from informal settlements in Nairobi with relevant technical and life skills to usher them into the labor market.

ACWICT targets a total of 160 young women, 60 of whom will be trained under the Cisco curriculum while 100 will be trained under the Business Processing and Outsourcing (BPO).

Participants targeted for the Cisco program will be trained up to the level of a Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA), which is the acceptable industry certification level with which one can gain quality employment in the networking sub-sector of the ICT sector.

Other implementing partners are the Informal Sector Business Institute (ISBI) and Nairo Bits, who will target 160 and 550 disadvantaged youth respectively, over the same period of time.

The partnerships have come at a time when rates of unemployment among the youth in Kenya are so high and the overall goal is to increase their employability prospects.

“Through these dedicated programs, we hope to empower Kenya’s young people and prepare them to compete for jobs and fulfill their dreams and aspirations for a better future for themselves and their communities,” said the President of Samsung Middle East and Africa, Kyungtae Bae, in a press statement.

Echoing these sentiments, the president and CEO of the International Youth Foundation, William S. Reese said creating employment avenues will go a long way in impacting the country’s social and economic prospects.

“Helping today’s youth get decent jobs is a critical step forward, not only in terms of improving their own prospects, but also positively impacting the social and economic development of their country,” he said.

Addressing the press during the launch, the ACWICT Executive Director, Ms. Constantine Obuya lauded the new deal saying it was a good avenue of addressing the plight of many young women. She underscored the importance of ICT as tools for social and economic empowerment.

The general manager of Nairo Bits, Ms. Irene Kihara said the youth had immense potential thus there was need to train them and secure their future.

The event was attended by representatives from Samsung, IYF as well as beneficiaries of the organizations’ previous programmes who shared their experiences on the program.