Girls in ICT innovation program

Girls in ICT innovation program

This is the second year that Huawei has launched the program in Nepal. Seeds for the Future – its global flagship CSR program for undergraduate level students from all ICT-related disciplines in Kathmandu on Tuesday.

Innovative technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), big data, cloud computing and Internet of things (IoT) in the information communications technology (ICT) area have become an important engine for driving the digital transformation of the social economy, and it is facilitating the growth of the ICT industry. However, opportunities usually come with challenges, and this holds true for the ICT's development and for the industrial digital transformation. Nepal has to seriously workout stategic plan to face this emerging wave of digital transformation.  One challenge is the huge deficit of ICT talent. Talent shortage both locally and internationally  has become a major challenge. 
In the coming two to three decades, technological progress will bring us into an intelligent world, where all things sense, all things are connected, and all things are intelligent. GIV 2025: Unfolding the Industry Blueprint of an Intelligent World, a white paper released by Huawei, forecasts that by 2025 there will be 40 billion AI-enabled personal smart devices, 90% of which will have an intelligent personal assistant.

The  seven selected students are pursuing bachelor’s level courses on ICT-related subjects. The three girls students selected from Nepal include Reeya Baidya (IOE, Pulchowk), Nadika Poudel (IoE Pulchowk) and Pagya Mallick (Kathmandu University).   The boys students selected include Nirman Khadka (Kathmandu University), Banshaj Paudel (Madan Bhandari Memorial College), Jatin Bhusal (Khwopa Engineering College), and Anju Tamang (Amrit Science Campus). 

Since their selection in July, the students have been receiving insights into the ICT industry in Nepal via various engagements. The students have received classes on the data center business in Nepal, learned how FTTH internet works during their visit to the offices of DishHome, and taken part in Chinese calligraphy and Chinese paper cutting workshop at the China Culture Center in Kathmandu. The students are also being engaged by UNESCO as part of theorganization’s “The Next 50” campaign.

The program was first launched in 2008 in Thailand. Since then, over 12,000 students from over 130 countries and regions have participated in the program. This year, the company said it received 256 applications from all over Nepal. A total of three girls out of seven students were then selected on the basis of their GPA, motivation letter and a selection interview.

The students will also get to participate in the first-ever regional onsite program going to be held in Bangkok from August 19 to August 27 where they will learn about 5G, AI, Cloud Computing, the Metaverse and other emerging technologies while also seeing practical applications of 5G and engaging in cross-cultural learning with students from 14 countries.

The selected students will also participate in the “Tech4Good” competition where they will have to come up with an original idea to combat real-world environmental or social problems. The winning teams from the Tech4Good project will get to join the Tech4Good accelerator camp being held in Singapore from August 29 to September 2. Upon their return, they will also visit a Huawei-built base station at Muktinath in late September.

 

Advances in technology have empowered people to exchange knowledge, become entrepreneurs and perform previously cumbersome activities efficiently and cost-effectively. It is high time that the policy makers reviewed academic curriculam in Nepal to move ahead alighned with emerging ICT integration of digital world with the physical world. ICT plays a vital role in economic and societal development. 

Organizations across industries are faced with embracing the digital advancements of our time while pushing for green development and sustainability. Girls and women empowerment need to be accelerated and integrated in the fast changing digital world. Continuous innovation is required to support the solutions that are responsible for the green development of the ICT industry. ICT will also provide an integral role in helping industries achieve efficient green development.

Green ICT will act as the foundation for a digital future that’s built on technologies like 5.5G and artificial intelligence (AI). Our future will require powerful energy efficient network capabilities for information carrying capacity. This will drive incredible innovations across industries from smart cities to autonomous vehicles, enhance connectivity everywhere, and accelerate business and technology evolution.

The ICT industry is facing several challenges navigating a digital and intelligent world The increasing need to reduce carbon by at least 45% by 2030 and meeting the demands and criteria for green infrastructure development.

Telecom Industry and Green Development

ICT infrastructures need to evolve in order to support the trajectory of green development solutions that initiate green sites, green networks, and green operations. This will be the key to unlocking energy efficiency enhancements that will drive energy conservation and emission reduction.  Changes to ICT infrastructure begin at the site level optimizing energy efficiency on main equipment and power supplies. Next, the network architecture is improved to incorporate full-optical, simplified and intelligent solutions. Lastly, operational enhancements can be made to better visualize and manage energy efficiency.

Huawei and operators are collaborating to leverage solutions in industries like transportation and mining to create value through digitization.

Improving the energy efficiency of ICT infrastructure and enabling digital advancements across industries will take the commitment and focus of industries to establish energy efficient guidelines and energy efficient measurement baselines to further green development of the ICT industry.

It’s crucial that an information infrastructure can support digital upgrades across industries. This includes enabling autonomous driving, smart city developments, smart home applications, new virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) capabilities, and much more.Computing potential, expansive connections, new expanded services, advanced wireless sensing; this is what a glimpse into the near future affords us. 2025 will be defined by 5.5G and sustainable green development. Thousands of industries will require the capabilities to enable their services and applications through 5.5G capabilities. The digital world will become deeply integrated with the physical world. 

The datacom industry will evolve and need the support of IPv6 technologies if enterprises are going to achieve flexible, high computing power with lower costs. Computing power networks must be able to balance computing power resources and network scheduling to unlock computing potential. For example, in wireless sensing 5.5G technologies, centimeter-level positioning precision, millimeter-level imaging resolution, and all-weather detection can be applied to vehicle-route collaboration, human health detection, real-time status detection, and inventory management.

As for IoT, billions of connections will be responsible for contributing to new experiences, applications, and operations for business across industries. NB-IoT chip shipments will reach an estimated 350 million by 2025, which opens up a passive IoT technology market space of hundreds of billions of connections. 

Green ICT

The ICT industry must be prepared to reduce carbon emissions amidst a digital intelligent future. Green development and sustainability will be necessary for the continuous innovation of the ICT industry, which will further enable thousands of other industries in achieving green development and sustainability goals of their own. Engagement of more girls and women will help accelerate process. Girls should be encouraged to have discussion on the challenges and opportunities arising from industry digitalization and teach them to explore how technologies like cloud, AI, and 5G can unleash value for organizations and industries.

Examples like solution that helps patients in Thailand receive faster emergency treatment. They achieved this through advanced route planning and real-time communications enabled by 5G, AI, and cloud technologies, shortening the time patients spend traveling to medical centers and improving their chance of survival.

 

Institutions’  CSR flagship program also should be for  digital skill training program. The program should be designed for cultivating leadership and team work through practice and group competition. The program should be to encourage to develop skilled, local ICT talent and bridge communication gaps between countries and cultures. The program's aim is  to foster inclusiveness, unity and cooperation in a contentious international environment along with other social goals.

Digital talent development has long been a strategic focus for Nepal’ Digital Framework Nepal There is a need for working with different stakeholders to increase Nepal’s 's digital competitiveness and ICT talents preparation for a digital Nepal.