May 8, 2019
By Marcy Majuek
The Cabinet Secretary for Information Communication and Technology, Mr. Joe Mucheru has said that technology has disrupted traditional way of life in the society through fast transmission of information that has affected greatly on human development.
Mr. Mucheru said because of the rapidly changing technological development, the government has laid down over 6000 kilometers of the National Fibre Optic Backbone Infrastructure (NOFBI) across all the 47 counties to provide a robust infrastructure to citizens.
Speaking while officiating the World Reader Digital Reading Summit at the Crown Plaza Hotel in Nairobi today, Mr. Mucheru stated that the government in partnership with some technology companies will extend broadband connectivity to the remote areas of the country using specially designed balloons to ensure easy access to digital services.
The Cabinet Secretary said that Kenya has joined the Smart Africa Initiative Alliance that will leverage on technology to create a single digital market in the continent. He said, the Initiative currently covers 24 countries with a population of 600 million.
The Cabinet Secretary explained that the government has also initiated the Presidential Digital Talent Program, which provides one year paid internship opportunities to ICT and engineering graduates as a move to develop skilled human capital to support ICT innovation capacity.
Mr. Mucheru commended some technology companies in the country, which he said have supported the development of talent through scholarships and training programs.
“ we thank Safaricom and Airtel for having supported internet connectivity to high schools and call on other partners to emulate in facilitation of our children towards digital reading,” Said Mr. Mucheru.
Mr. Mucheru also commended learning institutions in the country, which have enabled access to learning through e-learning platforms. He encouraged other institutions to design and incorporate e-learning programs to enable students have easy access to education.