Microsoft is giving Kenya courts six months free access to its Office 365 collaboration platform dubbed Teams as social distancing rules take root in the wake of Covid-19.
Open court sessions are suspended to limit exposure to the virus. Kenya courts are therefore relying on technology to continue operations and avoid backlogs.
Chief Justice David Maraga notes the court’s activities involve an extensive exchange of paperwork which risks the spread of the virus.
While it is prudent to upscale court activities it will not be wise to have open court sessions at this time. This doesn’t mean the courts have closed down,court operations have never and will never be closed. The proceedings can only be conducted remotely through increased use of technology. Except in exceptional circumstances, all pleadings are being filed and served electronically. All other matters including the delivery of judgements shall be handled through video conferencing or email. I want to announce Microsoft has donated the application of Microsoft Teams for use for six months free of charge.
Global pandemic Covid-19 has changed the way most people work. Governments are issuing lockdowns, curfews, cessation of movements and restricting the number of individuals at gatherings to curb the spread of the deadly virus. This has compelled businesses and organizations including courts to rethink their work model.
Technology companies such as Microsoft, Facebook, Zoom and Google have stepped in to help companies wade uncertain times as they seek to stay afloat. Most of the tech firms are offering video conferencing, remote and team collaboration tools free of charge during this period. Microsoft announced it is making Teams – which comes bundled in Office 365 – free for everyone.
“During this extraordinary time, it is clear that software, has a huge role to play across every industry and around the world“, notes Microsoft CEO, Satya Nadella. Speaking about the company’s unique role as a platform and tools provider during this global pandemic.
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Are you a female computer science, IT, or computer science-related course graduate? Or do you have six months or more coding experience? Apply to participate in the next software engineering cohort of the Microsoft LEAP Engineering Acceleration apprenticeship Program in Kenya.
The LEAP Engineering Acceleration Program is a Microsoft initiative that tries to increase diversity. Bringing more women into software engineering roles. By providing them with real world experience through development and project management apprenticeships with hands-on projects.
The selected participants will undergo six weeks of virtual classroom and labs training. Because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Microsoft notes, this is a training program only. However, successful candidates may be eligible to apply for Software Engineering roles within its Africa Development Center department.
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Microsoft
and Ministry of Agriculture sign MOU to help farmers in Kenya solve key
challenges
As part of its ongoing investment into agriculture for social good and AI, Microsoft announced the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding with the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Cooperatives (MALFC) to collaborate in accelerating innovation in the agricultural sector in Kenya.
The
Memorandum of Understanding will enable the Government of Kenya, through MALFC,
to tap into Microsoft technology to accelerate the aspirations of achieving
100% food and nutrition security in the country as part of the Government’s Big Four programme. This is
an accelerated five-year development plan designed to fast-track the
realisation of Kenya’s Vision 2030 programme through four key pillars,
including food security.
“To
ensure that we achieve our Food Security goal, we are striving for a 34 percent
increase in the daily average income of farmers, a 47 percent reduction in the
cost of food as a percentage of income, a 50 percent reduction in the number of
food-insecure Kenyans and to create 1,000 Agro-SMEs and 600,000 new jobs. Microsoft’s
technology will enable us to find innovative solutions that drive progress in
agriculture and support our 2030 vision,” says Principal Secretary for
Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Cooperatives, Proff. Hamadi Boga.
Microsoft
aims to support digital transformation in agriculture in order to drive
economic growth. Microsoft is deeply
engaged with finding innovative agri-tech solutions for African agricultural
problems, and has previously partnered with the World Bank through its One
Million Farmers Platform, and the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa
(AGRA), to co-create technology solutions in Africa.
As a
partner to MALFC, Microsoft will design, pilot and launch a programme to drive
agricultural solutions innovation that addresses key challenges facing the
agricultural sector such as pests and disease control, sustainable agricultural
resource management, agri-weather data, and others.
“Microsoft
believes that adoption and integration of technologies such as the cloud, AI
and more, into the agricultural space will bring about this transformation in
the form of precision. Microsoft wants to enable agricultural firms to become
thriving digital businesses that provide sustainable food and nutrition to the
world,” says Microsoft Kenya Country Manager Kendi Nderitu.
Microsoft
will leverage its Open Data Platform and Azure Chatbot services to help farmers
with agricultural pest control diagnostics. Microsoft 4Afrika will also co-host
workshops involving a wide range of agri-tech stakeholders including the World
Bank Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), Kenya Agriculture Livestock and Research
Organisation (KALRO), AGRA and others, to address issues in Kenya’s
agricultural data ecosystem.
In addition to its partnerships with AGRA and the
World Bank, Microsoft’s investments in agriculture include its FarmBeats project,
which is using is low-cost sensors, drones and machine learning algorithms to
support data-driven, precision farming. Previous winners of its AI for Earth
grants in Africa include SunCulture, DHI Group and the International Centre for Tropical Agriculture, who are all using artificial intelligence to
address food security and nutrition in Africa.
Through
its 4Afrika initiative, Microsoft will also partner with MALFC to recruit,
train and place interns through its Interns4Afrika
programme. This initiative seeks to offer young graduates the chance to grow
their careers through six-month placements in Microsoft partner organisations.
The programme helps bridge the gap between graduate skills and the skills set
employers are looking for, while providing graduates with real-world, hands-on
job experience to assist them in moving from learning to earning. By having
access to Microsoft trained and certified interns, Interns4Afrika partners can
extend their talent pipeline and retain strong talent.
“Agriculture is a priority area of investment for
us, not only because of the enormous number of livelihoods it supports and the
economic growth it drives, but also because it has a high potential to be a
data-driven sector,” says Amrote Abdella, Regional Director of Microsoft
4Afrika. “We’re fully committed to supporting agricultural transformation
starting in Kenya – and the rest of Africa – and more critically, the
innovators who are key drivers of this digital transformation.”
Microsoft 4Afrika has previously collaborated with the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) to co-create technology solutions in Africa. The partnership explores the uses of big data and AI in enabling data-driven, precision farming that increases farm productivity and profitability, and supports AGRA’s digital transformation as it works to improve food security for 30 million farming households across 11 countries by 2021.
The partnership is demonstrative of Microsoft’s ongoing investment in agri-tech across the continent, which also features partnerships with Twiga Foods, a mobile-based business-to-business food supply platform that links smallholder farmers in rural Kenya to informal retail vendors in cities.
Making sure your resources are highly skilled, is what Microsoft executive, Kunle Awosika, notes will drive innovation in Africa. He made the remark addressing over three hundred delegates. Representing CIOs, CISOs, CTOs, heads of IT, etc. in the banking and financial industry from across East Africa. At the second Africa BFSI Innovation Summit 2020 in Nairobi, Kenya.
Kunle Awosika, Small, Medium and Corporates Lead, Multi-Cluster Countries at Microsoft, shared insights on empowering digital transformation in the financial services industry (FSI). How these organizations can use emerging technologies to create better services and be agile. Microsoft is playing a big part in the evolution of industries he notes. Driving efficiency, automation and performance in financial services.
Skills is a critical part …
One of the challenges we are facing in Africa and within our region is this particular focus area of skills. He shares talking about the skills gap in our market. We see this as we engage our customers and partners. This is the biggest problem to driving innovation today within the banking sector, financial industry and many of the industries that we work in. Skills concern is the right of passage for you to move to the next level. We need to make sure our resources are highly skilled, this is what drives innovation at the end of the day.
Microsoft at Africa BFSI Innovation Summit
https://youtu.be/gxxwuunO7gE
Microsoft has been working through various learning platforms and partnerships to bridge the skills gap in the region.
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Kendi Ntwiga – Nderitu is new Microsoft Country Manager for Kenya.
Microsoft announces the appoint of Kendi Ntwiga – Nderitu as head of its operations in Kenya. Kendi, is tasked with developing and maintaining effective relationships across Microsoft’s subsidiaries, regional sales and marketing departments. As Microsoft Country Manager she will also have to increase Microsoft’s share of voice in the country.
“I am excited to join Microsoft at a time when digitization is seen as a key driver of progress and transformation in Africa. Kendi Ntwiga notes on her appointment. Microsoft’s mission is to empower every person and organisation on the planet to achieve more and I feel privileged to be the custodian of that mission in Kenya,” she continues.
Kendi is an IT business leader with more than 15 years of experience in the industry. The founder of She Goes Tech. Former General Manager of the East, West and Central Africa cluster for Check Point Software. She has also led and implemented business strategies across sub-Saharan Africa in roles at Oracle, HP and Intel.
“We are extremely excited to have Kendi join our dynamic team“. Shares Ibrahim Youssry, Microsoft Regional General Manager Middle East & Africa Multi-Cluster Country, welcoming Kendi. Ibrahim says “we are confident her extensive experience will go a long way in contributing to our overall mission. Of helping the continent on its digital transformation journey, while also driving greater diversity and inclusion across STEM fields.
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WISE4Afrika, is a Microsoft Women in Software Engineering mentorship initiative introduced in Africa. The initiative is looking to create a culture where more females take up STEM. By exposing the participants to mentorship from other female engineers, executives, educators and entrepreneurs. Microsoft hopes through this initiative participants will pursue and land careers in the ICT industry.
Thirty female students have participated in the program since it launched in Kenya in partnership with Strathmore University. Receiving trainings in various emerging technologies including machine learning and artificial intelligence.
Months into the program, the Microsoft Women in Software Engineering Africa mentees showcase what they’ve been learning. The top six participants got to present their projects at the Microsoft Policy Innovation center.
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