Huawei ICT contest winner an aspiration for country’s youth
By Mariam Raheem | Gwadar Pro Mar 16, 2023
ISLAMABAD, Mar. 15, (Gwadar Pro) - President Dr Arif Alvi said on Monday that Bhagchand Meghwar, belonging to the country’s Tharparkar, who won the first prize at Huawei’s Global ICT Competition, was an inspiration for the youth.
In a tweet, the president stated that "he is an inspiration for the Pakistani youth and affirms my view that ICT (information and communication technology) is the fastest, easiest, and shortest path to Pakistan’s socio-economic development and youth empowerment."
President Alvi lauded the hard work and persistence of Bhagchand and said, "It shows that Pakistani youth can do wonders if given the opportunity and guidance."
Tharparker, on the Pakistani border, still has no electricity or water, let alone the Internet. Bhagchand, a member of the local ethnic minority, has had a difficult life since childhood. According to his father, Bhagchand has six siblings, of which he is the youngest. They are all very nice, but Bhagchand stands out among them, always helping his parents around the house and trying to do more.
Despite the hardships, Bhagchand worked his way up from the local village school through hard work and persistence to enter the telecommunications college at Mehran University of Engineering and Technology (MUET). With the recommendation and guidance of his teachers at the school, Bhagchand and two of his classmates signed up for the Huawei ICT competition and went through all the hurdles to win the first prize in the national competition, regional competition, and global final. Finally, his team won the first prize of the 2021–2022 global finals of the Huawei ICT Competition with an outstanding performance.
After winning the first prize, Bhagchand is determined to keep moving forward and make more progress in the ICT sector. He believes the Huawei ICT competition is an important initiative. He said that "it gives Pakistani youth the opportunity to compete against teams from different countries in the region and around the world. It also provides us with ICT training that helps us in the global and regional finals, for which we are very grateful and proud!"
Bhagchand’s interest was not developing in telecommunication engineering initially, as he had heard a lot about the lack of scope and availability of jobs in the field. In an interview with Gwadar Pro, Bhagchand said that "the boys get discouraged in the IT field nowadays. My own classmates, about 80 percent of them, are still working outside their field. Despite Pakistanis being gifted with ICT and there being a lot of talents in Pakistani universities, they haven’t found any outlets due to a lack of guidance and channels."
However, the Huawei ICT competition completely changed the way Bhagchand and his classmates thought about telecommunications engineering. When Huawei provides opportunities and paths for such competition, talents automatically come to the fore. About 10,000 students in Pakistan register for the Huawei ICT competition every year.
He told the reporter that what he wants to convey to the youth of Pakistan is that, as the country comes to realize the need to invest more in ICT and the intellectual development of youth in the country, more organizations are providing training and giving certifications free of cost, and they can take the example of Huawei and other good IT companies. In addition, actively participate in the different competitions that are offered.
"Pakistani youth have great potential and bright prospects." "All they only need is a proper path," he concluded.
ISLAMABAD, Mar. 15, (Gwadar Pro) - President Dr Arif Alvi said on Monday that Bhagchand Meghwar, bel
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