Kenya's government is stepping up support for the country's ICT industry with the launch of the Ministry of ICT's 2016 Presidential Digital Talent Programme (PDTP) in partnership with private sector companies including SAP, Google Africa, IBM, SevenSeas Technologies and Liquid Telecom.

Four hundred university ICT graduates have been enrolled into this year's program with the aim of preparing them for work in the industry.

Days after a meeting with Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg to discuss internet access and plans to connect more Kenyans, Joseph Mucheru, Kenya's Cabinet Secretary in the Ministry of Information and Communication addressed the second cohort of ICT graduates to take part in the PDTP this morning at Kenya School of Government in Nairobi.

"Your skills and support will elevate the state of ICT in Kenya. We are creating an army of digital workers who will fully transform our country. We are also enacting policies to ensure we take full advantage of new emerging trends in ICT because we want Kenya to become an outsourcing hub of the world. You have the ability to bring significant change in the public sector."

Mucheru also told the graduates that PDTP is part of ensuring that the Kenya can play a role in the next decade which he says "promises to bring about the transformation of Africa through investment in ICT".

Building capacity for ICT development

The ITU Global ICT Capacity Building Symposium (CBS), hosted by the Communications Authority of Kenya under the theme 'embracing capacity building opportunities in the digital era', started in Nairobi today.

Alice Munyua, Board Member, Internet Society (ISOC) said technology has political implications. "Even though internet society is a technical organization, there's need for capacity building in line with Sustainable Development Goals."

Cabinet Secretary Mucheru is scheduled to address the Capacity Building Symposium.