A team of students from the Kenyatta University were named as the best innovators in the world at the 2022 Huawei Global Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Competition in Shenzen, China
The three-member team won the first prize in the Innovation Track category which focused on individuals leveraging on new technology to solve modern day problems.
Huawei revealed that the KU students trounced more than 130 teams from various institutions of higher learning from across the world.
An undated image of a semi-conductor chip used in manufacture of cars.
Africa-press.net “A total of 130 Team from across the world qualified for the Global Final in Network, Cloud & Innovation Competition. The Kenya Team won first prize in the Innovation Competition beating many other universities,” the statement read in part.
The students were recognized for leveraging new technology such as the Internet of Things (IoT), Artificial Intelligence (AI) and cloud computing to address challenges facing the country.
Prior to participating in the global competition, the team had emerged top in Africa where Kenyatta University was also awarded as the Best Performing University.
The Global ICT Competition is a talent exchange programme aimed at providing students with a platform to compete and acquire certification in order to enhance their ICT knowledge, practical and application skills, and raise their innovation awareness.
It also seeks to promote healthy development of the ICT talent ecosystem and support the integration of industry and education.
The awards confirm a 2021 ranking by the World Intellectual Property Organization, which named Kenya as the second most innovative country in the continent, after South Africa.
Based on an index dubbed the Global Innovation Index (GII) 2021 which looks at the investments in innovation, the report revealed that Kenya continued to invest heavily in innovation despite the effects of the global pandemic.
Tanzania closed the Africa top three list. In the global ranking, countries that ranked highest are those invested in scientific output, research and development and intellectual property.
Globally, the top five countries were Switzerland, Sweden, the United States of America, the United Kingdom and the Republic of Korea respectively.
Hosts reading out the names of prize winners of the Huawei ICT Global Competitions in Shenzen, China.
Huawei
