Information and communication technology company Huawei South Africa and the National School of Government have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to strengthen digital skills development within the public sector and accelerate government’s digital transformation journey.

The two-year agreement will see Huawei support the National School of Government in integrating selected Huawei technology courses into the existing National School of Government U-Learning ecosystem.

This will promote continuous professional development and provide public servants with access to curated courses on key technologies and global best practices.

The collaboration will also equip public- sector employees with the skills required to operate effectively in a rapidly evolving technological environment and bolster the National School of Government’s mandate of building relevant and forward-looking digital competencies.

AI, cybersecurity, networking, storage, cloud and digital government are key focus areas to ensure that public servants gain practical, future-focused skills that align with South Africa’s evolving digital landscape.

“As the primary provider of training and educational material for government employees, the National School of Government aims to expand its offering to include up-to-date technology learning pathways,” says National School of Government acting principal Phindile Mkwanazi.

Huawei is working with the National School of Government to help thousands of public servants build confidence in using AI, cloud and cybersecurity tools in their day-to-day roles, adds Huawei South Africa enterprise marketing and solutions director York Ning.

“Digital government depends on people as much as it depends on infrastructure. Our goal is to combine Huawei’s global technology expertise with the National School of Government’s deep understanding of the public service, so that digital skills become part of every official’s professional development journey.

“This partnership is about practical impact.”

The parties will co-develop learning paths aligned to the realities of public administration, from managing critical data securely to designing citizen-centric digital services, which will lay the foundations for a more capable, responsive and future-ready state, he adds.

“The National School of Government has forged partnerships locally and internationally to diversify our programmes and strived to be responsive to public sector needs.

“Our collaboration with Huawei provides us with the opportunity to empower our public sector employees to embrace digital transformation and drive positive change in governance and service delivery,” Mkwanazi concludes.