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| (Image Source: Manila Standard/Huawei Philippines) |
Huawei recognizes the best and brightest Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Talents from the Philippines with the recently concluded national round of the Huawei ICT Competition 2022-2023. The teams from De La Salle University (DLSU) and the University of the East (UE) Caloocan won the top spot in this year’s national round and will represent the Philippines in the upcoming Asia-Pacific and Global Finals Rounds next year.
Huawei Philippines crowned De La Salle University’s team the competition’s network track champion. Dr. Melchizedek Alipio mentored the DLSU team comprising of students Elmark Joseph Corpus, Martin, Adrian Enghoy, and Francis John Magallanes. On the other hand, UE Caloocan dominated the cloud track category with the team coached by Dr. Nelson Rodelas and comprising of students Jerwin Christian Samala, Angelo Laguinlin, Ralph Khen and Adrian Cuevas. For the network category and the cloud track, respectively, UE Caloocan and the University of San Carlos were named first runners up. The University of San Carlos was represented by instructor Luis Gerardo S. Caete Jr. and students Karl Jensen Cayme, Vince Andrei Retutal, and Miguel Edwin Salubre while Dr. Alexis John M. Rubio led the UE Caloocan team which included students Royvee A. Magno, Kim F. Hernandez, and Charles Kendrick S. Magalued.
The Huawei ICT Competition Asia Pacific 2022–2023 — Philippines kicked off on October 18, 2022 with 350 candidates. However, only 120 made it through to the preliminary rounds. Finally, a total of 39 teams advanced to the national finals, held last November 18, 2022. The theme of the event was “Connection, Glory, Future” with the goal of cultivating young ICT talents to drive future technical evolutions and creating global possibilities to grow and establish an amazing digital economy. Leading ICT professionals from the public and private sectors attended the summit and awards ceremony including Alex Luan, Director, Enterprise Business Group, Huawei Philippines; Atty. Lily Freida Milla, Officer-in-Charge, Office of the Deputy Executive Director IV; Ronald G. Brusola, Chief Technology Officer, Converge ICT Solutions Inc.; Karrie Buenafe, Senior PR Manager, Huawei Philippines; Dr. Giovanni Tapang, Dean, College of Science, University of the Philippines-Diliman; Converge ICT Solutions Inc.’s founder and CEO, Dennis Uy. In his opening speech, Luan stated that the purpose of the Huawei ICT Competition is to provide a platform to showcase the abilities and skills of future ICT professionals, while also connecting with the global academic community. “As a leader in innovation, Huawei not only continuously innovates and advances technologies and solutions, but also builds an ecosystem that cultivates talent for the ICT industry by providing a medium to connect the universities and colleges worldwide, creating a globally connected community that can share knowledge and ideas, thereby helping students to broaden their horizons, aspirations and goals,” said Luan.
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| (Image Source: Manila Standard/Huawei Philippines) |
Atty. Milla congratulated the students and answered the question, “Why we must pursue ICT?” She said, "I believe that ICT is one of the sectors that will help the Filipinos our collective long-term vision and aspirations as reflected in the Ambisyon Natin 2040, a country where everyone lives a life that is matatag, maginhawa at panatag. The leader of today and the future must create and nurture an enabling environment for the ICT sector where learners, practitioners and leaders are most welcome to constantly introduce improvements and developments while meeting the demands and conquering the challenges of the 21st century." Dr. Giovannie spoke about the hybrid learning during his speech, “Providing opportunities to eager young minds in their pursuit STEM careers is always an honor. UP Diliman College of Science is grateful to have worked with Huawei Technologies in meeting the rising demand for ICT professionals. Providing quality education while improving student learning environments requires partnership with private institutions such as Huawei, to equip our students from the classroom to the campus, as well as from scientific research and providing foundational training for the future.” He ended his message with the note, “It is our hope that your experiences in this competition and in hybrid classes will inspire you to dive deeper into the world of tomorrow. Hopefully, Huawei ICT Competition will motivate you to scale greater heights of discovery in service to the Filipino people.”
Brusola commended the students on their achievements, emphasizing the significance of career qualifications as future ICT professionals. On his speech, he said that courses on the Huawei Learning Platform are always up-to-date and relevant. “These certifications are just one of the ways our engineers stay updated with the latest information, trends, and skills, which serves as a valuable tool for Converge to keep delivering the kind of service our subscribers deserve. Being equipped with the HCIA-HCIE certifications from Huawei Tech PH can only lead you in the right direction in the ICT industry,” said Brusola. Uy also gave his congratulatory speech. He hopes that through this competition, students have discovered their own ability to use technology to find a better way of doing things. He also thanked Huawei Technologies Philippines for giving these students the platform to create possibly groundbreaking solutions.
The Huawei ICT Academy was launched in 2019 with 10 university partners in the Philippines. This year, Huawei Philippines established 67 academies, enabling over 16,000 Filipino students to benefit from Huawei’s ICT training, with over 2,000 students earning certification on various ICT-related topics, skills and processes.
