October 7: Chinese smartphone company Huawei has launched Seeds for the Future– its global flagship CSR program for undergraduate level students from all ICT-related disciplines in Nepal. The initiative was started as part of its Digital Talent Development Ecosystem.    
This is the first time that Huawei is introducing the program in Nepal. It was first launched in 2008 in Thailand. Since then over 9,000 students from 130 countries and regions have participated in the program.    
This year, 20 students from Nepal selected from a competitive application process will get to participate in the international program.    
At a press meet held to launch the initiative in Lalitpur on Wednesday, Huawei introduced the selection committee for the program composed of Prof. Dr. Shashishar Ram Joshi, Prof. Dr. Subarna Shakya and Prof. Timila Yami.    
The program will offer students an eight-day interactive online experience and first-hand insights into the ICT industry in Nepal. During the online program, students will receive entry level and advanced courses on key technologies, including 5G, cloud computing and AI and experience China through virtual tours. They will also hear from experts who will share perspectives on a wide range of topics from cyber security to aerospace industry, immerse in an interactive and dynamic classroom that allows for cross-cultural exchanges with fellows from other countries, participate in “Tech4Good” group project and get a glimpse at Huawei’s history and technological developments, according to a statement released by the company.    
CEO of Huawei Technologies Nepal Pvt. Ltd., William Zhang expressed the hope that students from Nepal would enthusiastically participate in the program, and shared that the company has a goal of developing 10,000 ICT talents in the next five years in Nepal. “Huawei hopes to help Nepal build the foundation for the Nepalese digital economy by partnering with all ICT stakeholders, through broadband connectivity, data centers, cloud and computing and other latest technologies", Zhang said.    
During its 21 years of operation in Nepal, Huawei said it is assisting the government, the public sector private businesses and all industry domains in their digital transformation through telecom, enterprise and public cloud service and solutions. --RSS