Kwale Deputy Governor Opens CIO100 Awards 2023

H.E Chirema Kombo, the Deputy Governor, Kwale County, called for technology leaders in Kenya to bring these services close to the people, as he gave the opening keynote address at the CIO100 Symposium and Awards in Diani.

The event that is set to take place over the next three days capping off with a gala dinner and awards, has brought together tech leaders and experts from across the continent. The Kwale County Deputy Governor marvelled at the gathering and challenged the delegates to bring in solutions that will help the county serve its people better, and solutions for the national government as well.

“We welcome you to Diani and we are glad that you chose this as the location for this big tech event. As a County government, we are always looking for technological solutions that will help us get closer to our people and help us host our guests well. The world is now looking towards technology for a lot of solutions and I believe that it will give us these solutions,” the Deputy Governor said giving an example of corruption, the big ailment in Africa, that can also be solved with technology as well.

For the next three days, tech experts and leaders around the continent will discuss the trending concepts in technology and form partnerships that will grow and drive technology over the next year or so. The attendees will be looking to explore discussions around topics such as as leadership in digital transformation, building resilient IT infrastructures, and the broader implications of digital transformation in Kenya and across Africa.

The moderators of the event; Mbugua Njihia and Kelly Bentley, also spoke at the opening saying that technology is the major connector and its role is big in the continent.

The major highlight in the event, however, is the ‘CIO of the Year’ award, celebrating an individual who has led a project that integrates technology with the organization’s vision and business strategy. Past winners include Moses Okundi, CTO/CIO of Absa Bank; Tom Mboya, Technology Lead for East Africa at Unilever; George Njuguna, Director of Information Technology (CIO) at Safaricom PLC; Jaine Mwai, CIO at Standard Chartered Bank; and Kenneth Ogwang’, Head of Digital and Technology for Eastern and Southern Africa at Diageo.

The event’s sponsors include AWS, Freshworks, VMware, SEACOM, CYBER RANGES, Zoho Corp, DownToEarth Technologies, Kaspersky, Nexford University, Seamless HR, Manage Engine, and Sophos.