The Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) and Huawei have reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening Kenya’s cybersecurity workforce through a national cybersecurity boot camp aimed at equipping students with practical digital security skills.
CA Director General David Mugonyi said Kenya’s fast-growing digital economy has increased the country’s exposure to cyber threats, making cybersecurity capacity building critical.
In a speech read on his behalf by the Director Universal Service Fund (USF) Eng. Dennis Chepkwony during the closing ceremony of the national cybersecurity boot camp, Mugonyi said that there is no doubt that Kenya’s digital transformation has been rapid and powerful, spanning mobile money, online public services and cloud adoption, creating new opportunities for businesses and citizens.
However, he warned that the increased digitisation had widened the country’s cyber-attack surface.
He revealed that between January and March this year, the National Kenya Computer Incident Response Team Coordination Centre (KE-CIRT/CC) detected more than 3.3 million cyber threat events targeting Kenya’s digital infrastructure.
“System attacks made up the largest share, with spikes witnessed in malware attempts, brute force and web application attacks,” he said.
According to Mugonyi, government agencies, internet service providers, universities and banks were among the most targeted institutions during the period.
He added that over 20.5 million cyber threat advisories had been issued in response to emerging threats, underscoring the urgent need for local cybersecurity expertise.
Citing global studies, Mugonyi said the cybersecurity workforce shortage remains a major challenge worldwide.
He referenced estimates by the International Information Systems Security Certification Consortium (ISC2), which place the global cybersecurity workforce gap at approximately 4.8 million professionals.
He further cited the Africa Perspectives on Cybersecurity Report 2025 by Check Point Software Technologies, which estimated that Africa currently faces more than 200,000 unfilled cybersecurity positions.
“To close the cybersecurity gap effectively, Kenya must build its own pipeline of talent, from engineers and analysts to incident responders who understand our networks and our context,” he said.
Mugonyi disclosed that more than 3,000 students applied for the boot camp, with 854 qualifying for online self-paced training and more than 200 advancing to instructor-led practical sessions. Only 20 finalists made it to the final stage of the competition.
“One issue the cybersecurity community cannot afford to ignore is the growing impact of artificial intelligence on the threat landscape,” he said.
He observed that Kenya is already experiencing AI-assisted cyber threats, including highly personalised phishing attacks and automated cybercrime tools.
“Our cyber defenders must evolve as well. We need professionals who understand both offensive and defensive applications of AI and who can design safeguards,” he added.
Mugonyi challenged universities to align their curriculum with emerging industry needs through practical training approaches such as hackathons, capture-the-flag competitions and red-team versus blue-team simulations.
He reaffirmed the CA’s commitment to strengthening Kenya’s cybersecurity ecosystem through partnerships and specialised training initiatives.
“The investments we make today in building this talent are the defenses Kenya will deploy tomorrow,” he said as he officially declared the cybersecurity boot camp closed.
Huawei Kenya’s Head of Government Affairs and Policy, Adam Lane, said the programme, which began in 2022, has become an important annual platform for capacity building in the ICT sector.
“We started this programme back in 2022, so it’s really nice to be here again. It’s almost an annual programme working with the CA on capacity building,” Lane said.
He noted that the initiative forms part of Huawei’s broader training programmes targeting students, government institutions and the private sector. According to him, the programme provides participants with access to the Huawei Certified ICT Associate (HCIA) certification in cybersecurity.
Lane explained that the training covered areas such as network security standards, firewall security policies, intrusion prevention technologies, cryptography, VPN technologies and cybersecurity attack methods.
“The industry is changing very rapidly. Even those who have studied the course before will continue learning new things as the course evolves every year,” he said.
The students underwent online self-paced learning, instructor-led virtual lessons and face-to-face practical sessions in Nairobi before sitting practical examinations at Huawei offices.
Lane said the company has partnered with more than 60 universities and Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) institutions across Kenya to promote digital skills development. Hundreds of lecturers have also been trained to support cybersecurity learning in higher education institutions.
He encouraged students to maintain professionalism, discipline and continuous learning as they prepare to join the labour market.
“As much as the skills are important, dedication and passion are equally important. We never stop learning and must remain committed to learning new skills on a daily or weekly basis,” he said.
The programme also included study tours to leading ICT institutions including the CA, Huawei training centres, TESPOK, KENIC and Konza Technopolis, where participants were exposed to technologies such as 5G infrastructure, fibre installation systems, Internet of Things (IoT) platforms and smart city innovations.
By Paskal Osonga and Achieng Nicole
