[kictanet] Software Certification Kenya. ICT Board Project to support the BPO/ITES sector
S.Murigi Muraya
murigi.muraya at gmail.com
Fri Feb 5 16:44:09 EAT 2010
Walu / Alice,
Please make sure Emmanuel is enlisted on KICTANET.
Thanks
SMM
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Emmanuel Birech <birech at hotmail.com>
Date: Thu, Feb 4, 2010 at 1:24 PM
Subject: [Fwd: Re: [kictanet] Software Certification Kenya. ICT Board
Project to support the BPO/ITES sector]
To: ke-internetusers at bdix.net, kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke,
kkobia at ict.go.ke, murigi.muraya at gmail.com, agostal at gmail.com,
pkukubo at ict.go.ke
Hi Paul & Liko,
It is the availability of a critical mass of software development skills
that’s going to allow software companies to have resources when they need
them, and the same skilled individuals can start their own firms if they are
entrepreneurial. The skilled individuals can be both certified or not
certified at first, but if targeting outsourcing, it is preferable that they
are. So, I fully support what the ICT board is trying to do to encourage
certification, but would also like to share the following comments around
some of the scope of service initiatives that have been highlighted:
*Content development for certification:* I don’t think there is sufficient
value for *local* content development as there are various certification
tracks already existing for various software certification areas. I see no
mention of .NET (C#, Visual Basic, F#) in the email though, but including
the other languages you mentioned, there exist globally trusted and
recognized certification tracks for these programming languages and also
relevant and widely used training content. Why would a Kenya developer or
software company want to sit the Kenyan track when they can certify in the
world wide recognized one? This Kenya one may actually limit their horizon
to Kenya.
Certification should not be the only drive. We should encourage people to
take up software development as a career up to and including in high
schools. The fundamental blocks here are the access to the developer tools
and training manuals / e-learning material. Certification can happen later
for most, but key is to be able to write software, and this will get them a
leg in a software company after which they can pursue certification.
*Certification Process Development**:* Paul’s discussion touches on working
with leading IT companies and academic institutions and this is the best way
for creating that critical mass of skills. For established local software
companies that want to showcase their maturity in the full Application Life
Cycle Management, there are also international certification programs
available. A well adopted one is the Capability Maturity Model Integrated
(CMMI). In fact there are studies showing that this is the reason that India
has been quite successful (see article
http://archives.infotech.indiatimes.com/articleshow/836340.cms) even though
they are no longer a cheap destination. This certification acts like a
guarantee for quality, which is critical in this industry.
I see the ICT Board’s value here as making CMMI or similar level
certification available locally at a much reduced cost (It is expensive
currently as the consultants to evaluate are not based here and could
involve several trials and getting to CMM level 5 could cost upwards of USD
50K currently). So I support the boards drive to have a local center in the
same line as Joburg Centre for Software Engineering to help with this. The
number of companies with this certification will increase with the right
support and that can be used to start branding Kenya as a software
outsourcing destination that has software quality in mind. No need to create
anything local; just to make what is internationally available is cost
friendly and accessible.
Finally, I think one other thing the ICT Board could try to do is to support
with connections to venture capital. I feel it may be a challenge for most
software entrepreneurs to access capital (and most times not much capital is
needed as this is people business) to grow and expand or even start
operations, and even though we may have the youth fund locally, The fund is
not IT Specific and software entrepreneurs compete with many other business,
probably putting them at a disadvantage. IT Specific funds can help
especially if they can be disbursed with the advice of the ICT board.
Regards,
Emmanuel Birech
------------------------------
Agosto
I think this has been misunderstood or perhaps it is not clear. we are
actually on the same page. This is to enable us to adopt a globally
certified software development methodology and certification for generic
software development. This is Most software developers in this country would
benefit from the establishment of a higher standard of code development.
Most software firms would benefit from access to
international certification in process and methodology which is otherwise
very expensive.
Good example is the project in South Africa at the University of Wits with
the Joburg Centre for Software Engineering. http://www.jcse.org.za/. We had
spoken to them about partnering as well, but opted for this option.
The suggestion you make is not an alternative, but another important
strategy for achieving a more enhanced IT services sector and it is actually
one that we have given much thought too. We are seeking the funding to do as
well. Just this morning I have had a meeting with Symantec who are beefing
up their presence in Kenya. Some of the discussions we have had go along the
same them as I have had with many other multinationals who visit us often.
1. Many Kenyan business owners in IT services are afraid to make the
investment in top talent certification despite the obvious returns because
the certified employees often flee and are 'unbondable'. As an example it
costs close to 10,000 USD to certified a top Cisco engineer who can then
earn that in a month with some experience in any market in the world.
2. To develop Kenya's ICT credentials we will need to develop more
certified engineers and experience consultants across the board, and across
various technology platforms. We need technical implementation people, but
we also need systems architects and experienced solution designers who
can interpret business problems and convert them into an IT specification.
Those who have been the industry for a while will attest to the fact that
although we have a growing Kenyan pool, still many large IT systems in
banks, major multinationals and other large organizations have substantial
input from consultants from outside Kenya. This is for various reasons and
is not unique to Kenya. At the very top level of talent in IT, there is a
global shortage.
3. To build Kenya IT properly, the investments in all the right places
need to be made. As we spend more on IT as a country, the demands becomes
even more sophisticated. For example, with the current connectivity
transformation, there is need for security, network, data center engineers
and consultants. Without any research, one can attest to the frustrations
experienced by some on their networks even currently. This is
an opportunity for entrepreneurs.
4. When we sell the country as an outsourcing destination, all these
things matter, the whole ecosystem including marketing, training, depth of
experience, breadth of experience, industry culture, government policy,
legislation, peer recommendations by companies based here, and indeed the
nightlife.
The reason why we think it important to provide the software sector with
greater tools is because this sector is often made up of young
brilliant entrepreneurial individuals who leave college
sub-optimally equipped for commercial application of their craft. They then
have to fend foe themselves and then some of them will develop into good
engineers while many other others will pick up bad habits in who they write
software. These bad habits become the industry norm and then define our
sector. Standards are critical.
Paul Kukubo
Chief Executive Officer, Kenya ICT Board
PO Box 27150 - 00100
Nairobi, Kenya
12th Floor, Teleposta Towers Koinange Street
Tel +254 20 2089061, +254 20 2211960
Fax: +254 20 2211962
Cell: + 254 735 180001
website: www.ict.go.ke
skype: kukubopaul
googletalk: pkukubo
____________________
Vision: Kenya becomes a top ten global ICT hub
Mission: To champion and actively enable Kenya to adopt and exploit ICT,
through promotion of partnerships, investments and infrastructure growth for
socio economic enrichment
Sent from Nairobi, Kenya
On Tue, Feb 2, 2010 at 1:31 PM, Agosta Liko <agostal at gmail.com> wrote:
Paul
for this software certification program .... how much will be spent ?
instead of creating a Kenyan cert that will have no global value or that
will not make sense to any international employer why dont you just give a
50% coupon to enable Kenyans to sit their linux, Microsoft, Oracle, SAP
Certifications ?
or even better, you can refund 80% when a Kenyan techie passes a cert exam
{I learnt that people were complaining about cost of international certs}
this is where am coming from - Kenyan Drs usually have to resit exams etc
etc to practice in other countries ... IT is a good area because certs are
global (CCIE is known worldwide) ... why cant we stick to what works
Again ... maybe other software outsourcing operators have been asked for
certs ... but am sure they were asking for the globally recognized ones
Can we just cancel this one ? its too much work for nothing ... {a Kenyan
Cert in software development} ...
and if you go ahead {which is most likely the case} .. please make it
optional ?
my two cents
On Tue, Feb 2, 2010 at 11:26 AM, Paul Kukubo <pkukubo at ict.go.ke> wrote:
Thank you for your questions. many have written to me directly to seek
clarification.
I have received a flurry of questions on the status report and I will
respond to those that are of a recurring nature directly on this list while
pointing listers to the website www.ict.go.ke for more information and
updates on aspect of the projects.
*Objective of the assignment*
The objective of this assignment is to recruit a leading international
academic institution or standards body to develop and implement an
internationally recognized and sustainable software developer certification
program (Certification Program) for Kenya. The Certification Program will
have multiple components, including content and processes for local software
developers to prepare, register and be certified; an Internet enabled
credentialing program; and an initial pilot testing, evaluation and fine
tuning of the Certification Program. The program should be underpinned by a
sustainable business model.
* Scope of services*
i. *Inception Report and Business Plan:* Provide an Inception Report that
contains a description of start-up activities, the detailed work plan,
methodologies, and an estimate of the time allocation for involved personnel
from both the Government of Kenya and the organization’s team. In addition,
to provide a business plan that spells out the resources to be deployed and
the results proposed to be achieved. The business plan should also propose
long term, sustainable business model options for the Certification Program.
ii. *Content Development:* Develop appropriate content for
certification in close collaboration with relevant partners; including
leading international and local IT companies, academic institutions,
governments, international standards bodies and industry/trade associations.
The developed content should have their explicit support in terms of
relevance and quality, be based on the latest technologies and extensible to
address the major languages (C, C++, Java), operating systems, language
combinations, and software development tools and environments.
iii. *Certification Process Development: *Develop an
internationally recognized, authentic, secure and valid process for software
developer certification. This process should be developed in consultation
with leading IT companies and academic institutions as well as have the
buy-in of at least two industry associations of established countries in the
area of BPO, and two countries aspiring to establish themselves in this
domain. Countries should be chosen to be representative of at least three
regions out of the following: Latin America and the Caribbean, Europe and
Central Asia, Middle East and North Africa, South Asia, East Asia and other
parts of Sub Saharan Africa. In addition, the processes should be based on
proven experiences in similar certification programs. The testing process
should be representative of real-life, professional software development.
The examinations should also be refreshed annually; and extendable to
address the full software development life cycle (including post-deployment
maintenance) and modern issues (including the development of secure software
systems). The examination must be developed using recognized techniques for
validation and verification of quality. Linkages may be established with one
or more organizations with leading testing and certification mechanisms to
ensure that the certification will be conducted in a secure and proctored
setting.
iv. *Provision of Internet-Enabled Credentialing
Program:*Provide a web-enabled credentialing program, including
functions for online
registration, preparation and certification.
v. *Piloting:* To pilot the Certification Program with an
initial batch of at least 50 enrollees, comprising of local software
developers who should be benchmarked against a control group.
vi. *Evaluation Reports:* Conduct an evaluation of the pilot
to prepare a detailed report to recommend strategies and action plans for
improving the Certification Program. An evaluation should also be conducted
on gaps and weaknesses in software development skills, so as to recommend
changes in curriculum and pedagogy required as part of broader education
reforms in Kenya.
vii. *Program Refinement and Local Capacity Building:* Refine
the Certification Program based on the agreed recommendations of the
Evaluation Report, and develop capacity within the country to conduct the
assessments for certification.
viii. *‘Live’ Rollout:* Commence ‘live’ rollout of the
Certification Program with assessment of certification by local
institutions, with the target of testing at least 200 local software
developers. In addition, to obtain the commitment of leading companies
operating globally and locally to use the results as a necessary
pre-requisite for their hiring decisions.
ix. *Mass Rollout and Marketing, and Business Model
Implementation: *Implement mass rollout and marketing campaign for the
Certification Program across Kenya, with a target to test at least 500 local
software developers. In addition, to implement a business model for the
Certification Program that is internationally recognized, financially
self-sustaining and affordable for local software developers by the end of
this consultancy service (24 months after contract signature). A final
report is to be prepared to highlight the next steps to be taken by Kenya
for the Certification Program, including future steps on training content
development, certification process and local capacity building.
Paul Kukubo
Chief Executive Officer, Kenya ICT Board
PO Box 27150 - 00100
Nairobi, Kenya
12th Floor, Teleposta Towers Koinange Street
Tel +254 20 2089061, +254 20 2211960
Fax: +254 20 2211962
Cell: + 254 735 180001
website: www.ict.go.ke
skype: kukubopaul
googletalk: pkukubo
____________________
Vision: Kenya becomes a top ten global ICT hub
Mission: To champion and actively enable Kenya to adopt and exploit ICT,
through promotion of partnerships, investments and infrastructure growth for
socio economic enrichment
Sent from Nairobi, Kenya
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