Empowering Iraqi students: Huawei's collaboration with KRI's Ministry of Higher Education
Shafaq News / In order to create job opportunities for students of Iraqi institutes and universities to enter the job market and rely on themselves without waiting for government employment, as well as to honor top-ranking students in information technology competitions in the Middle East and international events, the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research in the Kurdistan Region (KRI), in collaboration with Huawei Iraq, held a specialized conference titled "Symposium for ICT and Vocational Education" aiming to enhance technical and vocational education in the scientific field, develop capabilities in technology and communications, and establish cooperation with the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research by supporting academies working with the latest advanced technology.
Dr. Rafid Al-Khafaji, the Public Affairs Director of Huawei in Iraq, told Shafaq News Agency that "the primary goal of this conference is for Huawei in Iraq to honor outstanding Iraqi university students who excelled in scientific competitions at the Iraqi and Middle Eastern levels in Huawei's international information technology competitions, where universities in the region demonstrated a significant performance in excellence."
He added, "Another goal is cooperation between Huawei in Iraq and the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research in KRI by supporting this significant segment of students, providing support to academies operating with the latest advanced technology introduced to Iraq, establishing institutes in universities to equip students with the necessary skills before graduation, facilitating job opportunities in the private sector, making them qualified from these advanced institutes without depending on government job appointments."
He affirmed that "KRI will proudly be the first launchpad for academies in the Middle East."
Dr. Aram Mohammed Qadir, Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research in KRI, emphasized the "necessity of vocational education in the Region's universities because of the government and the ministry's inclination towards developing vocational education, which is somewhat limited. Thus, the focus is on supporting it by establishing new centers for technical programs to connect universities and technical institutes with the job market. The focus is now on the student, unlike the previous focus solely on professors at universities, emphasizing the student's development and abilities through their skills to easily secure employment after graduation."
He added, "We have a memorandum of understanding with Huawei Iraq since 2017. This agreement works to support all activities in the ministry. We collaborated with Huawei by sending a group of students to China and Huawei's headquarters to learn about their advanced working mechanism."
The minister continued, "We have 12 vocational and academic educational centers in KRI universities that we are developing to enhance the capabilities of university professors and students, enabling them to have a significant presence in international scientific forums, especially since they have achieved a significant percentage of international awards."
The conference witnessed the attendance of Dr. Aram Mohammed, the Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research in the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), Dr. Abdul Hakim Khisro, Director of Coordination and Monitoring Department in KRGt, and Khanzad Ahmed, Secretary-General of the High Council for Women's Affairs in KRG.
On his part, Liuyong, Representative of the Consul General of China in Erbil, highlighted the role of information technology, communications, and vocational education in providing job opportunities, signing a memor…
