Huawei seeks students for Seeds for the Future programme

Huawei is seeking top university students from TT to take part in Huawei's global Seeds for the Future (SFTF) programme – the company's technology training initiative, which exposes tertiary students in science, technology, engineering, mathematics (STEM) to global knowledge and expertise in the field of information and communication technology (ICT).

This is the 8th instalment of the SFTF programme and will run from October 9-16. A release from Huawei said after the end of the pandemic, the initiative resumes its in-person, travel-abroad format.

Successful applicants will spend eight days in Costa Rica, where they will be part of a contingent of 80 of the top STEM university students from Latin America and the Caribbean.

The release said new elements will be introduced, including mentorship provided from Huawei headquarters, incentives for the top three selectees, an eight-day programme of offline activities and a local workshop featuring high-level officials from the region.

Huawei said in the release, "Knowing that the digital economy has become the national strategy of most countries, the SFTF programme supports digital transformation and economic growth by training the talent and promoting critical thinking through the development of projects."

It said the SFTF programme provides an important platform for students to learn about the innovative technologies of the industry, experience cross-cultural exchanges and foster entrepreneurship. The release said the vision is to shape future young leaders, guide them into the digital industry and build the local digital community.

The SFTF initiative started in TT in 2016 and has seen 90 students benefit from this STEM training, with almost half of them travelling to China for two weeks of hands-on instructions at Huawei’s headquarters, as well as in Chinese culture, and some also being integrated into Huawei’s operations in TT.

With the programme now shedding its all-online format, new participants will once again be able to enjoy the face-to-face learning, cross-cultural communication, and hands-on training in Huawei’s cutting-edge technologies such as artificial intelligence, Cloud, and 5G while in Costa Rica.

Huawei Technologies (TT) Ltd's public relations manager Tricia Henry gave details, saying the intended participants must be talented university students with a GPA of 3.0 or a top-30 per cent faculty ranking; majoring or interested in ICT as well as cross-cultural exchanges and entrepreneurship; and with a high proficiency in English.

Applications will be open until July 20 and all relevant applicants will be interviewed for the selection of the final ten students who will participate this year.

Registration, selection, and interviews will take place from June-August, with the kick-off event carded for the first week of October, and the closing ceremony set to be staged on October 16.

The release said so far, Huawei’s SFTF programme has helped nurture more than 2.2 million digital talents in over 150 countries since its inception in 2008. The programme forms part of the company’s global ICT talent development initiative, seeking to invest in building the human-resource capacity for the new digital era. In 2021, Huawei announced it had already invested US$150 million and planned to invest another US$150 million in digital talent development before 2026, which is expected to benefit an additional three million people.

More information on the SFTF programme can be found at https://www.huawei.com/minisite/seeds-for-the-future/program.html.