India’s Minister of External Affairs, S Jaishankar, inaugurated the IT center at Namibia University, known as The India Namibia Centre of Excellence in Information Technology (INCEIT), which was constructed with assistance from India. Jaishankar commended the newly opened INCEIT as a testament to the strengthening partnership between India and Africa. The center, equipped with advanced IT infrastructure, is the result of collaborative efforts between India and Namibia in development, cooperation, and capacity-building.
Speaking at Namibia University of Science and Technology (NUST) in Windhoek, Jaishankar described the IT center as a “bridge” connecting the academic and technological sectors of both countries. The center began offering courses in November 2019 with support from the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (CDAC), which provided course materials, reference books, and a significant amount of IT hardware and software. Despite the challenging circumstances during the pandemic, the remaining installations were completed.
Jaishankar also mentioned that six master trainers from Namibia underwent training at CDAC in India to become instructors at INCEIT. The center is additionally equipped with a CDAC PARAM Supercomputer with High-Performance Computing (HPC) Applications, which has been installed with numerous application software for optimal usage.
Expressing gratitude for the support and collaboration of the Vice Chancellor and his team, Jaishankar acknowledged their efforts in making the project a reality and developing industry-oriented programs to address skill requirements in areas such as cybersecurity, big data analytics, e-governance applications, and software development. He noted that the center has provided courses and training to over 275 professionals, government officials, students, teachers, and researchers.
During Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Africa in 2018, he emphasized that the priority of India’s partners is India’s priority. PM Modi recognized the potential of India’s digital revolution to support and enhance Africa’s development, improve public services, extend education and healthcare, and uplift marginalized communities. Jaishankar emphasized that this philosophy forms the core of the partnership.
According to Jaishankar, the most effective partnership between allied nations is to develop human capital institutions that empower nations to pursue growth according to their own priorities. He highlighted India’s leading role in providing capacity building and training to Namibian nationals through programs such as the I-tech Indian technical and economic cooperation program, ICCS scholarship schemes, and various professional courses. Jaishankar also cited the example of India’s successful digital implementation in Namibia, where the CoWIN app served as the technological backbone for India’s COVID-19 vaccination program, facilitating the administration of over 2.5 billion vaccine doses.
Happy to see partnership increasing between India and Namibia.