The Intel Student Ambassador Program was launched in a colorful and Intel goodies-full tech talk dubbed Silicon Savannah: how to make it in Kenyan tech, on Friday 16^th August. The program is expected to benefit University students across Kenya as well as help Intel gain traction in the African market as they set to establish a footprint in the mobile space in Africa.  The student ambassador program will expose selected students to great opportunities for internships, travel, events and training programs with Intel. Intel will also be able to bring their technology, products and service closer to those who need it such as developers and techies locally. Intel has already opened up a portal called Intel Developer Zone where developers can access Intel’s latest resources for Android, Html 5   and other latest technology from Intel.

 

The launch was preceded by talks from two of Kenya’s most successful tech entrepreneurs. These were Jimmy Gitonga and Conrad Akunga. Jimmy a seasoned developer and manager at the iHub spoke of great opportunities for tech entrepreneurs in East Africa saying the region produces the best of the best in tech. Jimmy wowed the audience by stating that MIT is very much interested in developers from this region because they are simply excellent in what they do! He encouraged a collaborative approach in order to make it in the Kenyan tech scene.

 

Conrad took the audience by storm with a talk full of practical nuggets on the dos and don’ts of succeeding in the Kenyan tech scene. He noted that as Africans, we are blessed with many problems and these are good and opportunities for producing practical solutions. He challenged aspiring tech entrepreneurs to think bigger and aim for a higher level of excellence, as well as to avoid going into business blindly, but rather spot the opportunity first.

 

Intel’s Software and Services Group East Africa lead Agatha Gikunda expressed her optimism for the program, encouraging students to apply in order to seize the vast opportunities Intel was ready to offer. Intel will select five ambassadors from Strathmore University. The program will be launched across other universities in Kenya quarterly.

 

With Android taking up 60 percent of the smartphone market and devices becoming bigger and faster, Intel has moved aggressively into the mobile market space, putting Kenya at the center of it in Africa. Agatha announced that the 2 in one tablet/laptop is poised to be the game changer in the market due to the unique convenience it offers as a laptop and tablet when needed.

 

For more inform­a­tion and regis­tra­tion for the Intel Stu­dent Ambas­sador Pro­gramme, click here