This article was originally published by Gabriella Mulligan at Disrupt Africa.
Editor’s note: If there isn’t a serious concerted effort to visibly raise the level of ICT competencies in Kenya, it will not bode well with attracting foreign investment in the plethora of current and future Startup ventures taking place in many tech centers around the globe.
Kenyan job seekers lack ICT skills and a mentality geared towards independent work, both of which need to be urgently addressed to improve the employment sector, according to Deborah Beaton, founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of online recruitment company Kama Kazi.
Disrupt Africa reported earlier this month, Beaton predicts the online recruitment market in Kenya is “set to explode soon”. Kama Kazi is currently on the lookout for investors, in a bid lead this expected upwards trend in online HR services.
However, speaking to Disrupt Africa, Beaton says job seekers often endanger their own chances of finding employment through a complete lack of ICT skills – a skill set in high demand.
“ICT skills are highly in demand especially from investing companies who are used to everyone having a certain standard of ICT competence as a minimum. This has been tricky for us. We find people with a degree who can barely use a computer. Basic ICT competence is very low,” Beaton says.
While Kenya is famed for its mobile uptake and innovation, Beaton says much more needs to be done to encourage basic ICT literacy among students, and ICT skills need to be elevated to a “minimum requirement” of education.