Huawei South Asia inaugurated its flagship programme “Seeds for the Future” in Bangladesh at a ceremony held at Huawei Bangladesh Academy on Wednesday.

With the aim to develop an ICT ecosystem by enhancing ICT knowledge of STEM and non-STEM students, it is the 10th time Huawei is going to arrange this event in Bangladesh. Registration is open for interested participants now, read a press release.

ICT State Minister Zunaid Ahmed Palak was present at the inauguration event as the chief guest.

Yao Wen, ambassador of China to Bangladesh; Pan Junfeng, president of Huawei South Asia Region and CEO of Huawei Bangladesh; Zhang Zhengjun, president, Public Affairs and Communications, Huawei Asia Pacific; Nicolas Ma, president, Huawei Asia Pacific Enterprise Business Group; and Prof Mohammad Rafiqul Islam, vice-chancellor of Islamic University of Technology, attended the event among others.

In his speech, Zunaid Ahmed Palak said, “To achieve the targets of Smart Bangladesh, we have taken technology as our main driving force, where our current students will play the leading role. The Seeds for the Future program will allow them to learn and access frontier technologies.

“They will visit Huawei’s recent and modern facilities and will meet global mentors and tech leaders. Our main responsibility under the ICT Division is bridging the gap between industry and academia, and I am thankful to Huawei for supporting us in several initiatives like establishing ICT academies.”

Yao Wen said, “Seeds represent hopes and forecast harvest. Seeds of cooperation bring the fruits of development, cultivate talent in the ICT area and benefit the people of China and Bangladesh.

“For facing the future, China stands ready to continue to sow the seeds of wisdom with Bangladesh. Under the leadership of Honorable Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Bangladesh has achieved Digital Bangladesh and moving towards Smart Bangladesh,” he said.

“I really find Huawei's these kinds of events very meaningful towards that goal. I wish Seeds for the Future a complete success,” the ambassador added.

Zhang Zhengjun said, “Seeds for the Future program has been facilitating the youth of this country in multi-faceted ways. For Bangladesh, who is enjoying a demographic dividend, it is of utmost importance to tap into the potentials of the youth. Huawei has been collaborating with Bangladesh’s government in this regard for a very long time.”

Pan Junfeng said, "As 25 years long-term partner of Bangladesh ICT industry, we believe in working for the betterment of the community where we work. In continuation of those efforts, Huawei keeps organizing different programs to open up new avenues and platforms for the youth to gather knowledge and develop insights.

“Seeds for the Future is one such program where participants will learn about industry best practices directly from the experts and be able to put their capability to the test."

VC Rafiqul Islam said, "Young people are the future of our country, and the progress of our country depends on how we make them strong technically to face the challenges of 4th Industrial Revolution.

“Huawei has designed 'Seeds for the Future' so well that it will bring something good for these young learners. I hope this year’s program will gather further momentum to reveal the experience for all the participants,” he added.

Undergraduate students can apply for this programme. Students must be in their third year or above with a CGPA of 3.3+, read the release.

To register for the programme, they have to send a cover letter or application which reflects their objective to participate, interest in ICT and enthusiasm for learning, and curriculum vitae (CV) to [email protected].

Selected participants from the registration will be provided with three-day boot camp training on business and technology. After the boot camp training, participants have to submit a project and prepare a presentation.

Through various evaluations and pitching, the top six winners will be selected from Bangladesh round. Among the six winners, the champion will get Huawei Laptop, first runner-up will get Huawei Tab and second runner-up will get Huawei watch. All six of the winners will get the opportunity to participate in the training at Huawei headquarters in China.

Since its first launch in Bangladesh in 2014, “Seeds for the Future” programme has been facilitating the youth of this country by creating exposure to cutting-edge technologies and insights from industry experts. More than 15,000 students globally have benefitted from the programme so far.