Universiti Malaya (UM) chalked up another achievement in its books as the students from the prestigious university’s Faculty of Computer Science and Information Technology (FCSIT) made the country proud by emerging as champions in the annual Huawei APAC ICT Competition 2023 held in Jakarta, Indonesia defeating 290 other leading universities across 10 countries to be eligible for the Global Final of the Huawei ICT Competition in May 2023.

Organised to showcase and uncover the hidden talents of students in Asia, Huawei’s APAC ICT Competition 2023 attracted more than 4,800 Huawei ICT Academy students as well as teachers from 290 leading universities and colleges from 10 countries.

The Huawei ICT Competition includes the Network and Cloud Tracks which challenge students' theoretical knowledge and hands-on ICT skills as well as their ability to work in a team.  For their entry in the Network track, UM won the first prize where their winning idea was based on a network optimising solution designed to improve the performance of TCP/IP-based networks –identifying a need for more efficient and reliable network communication, particularly in large-scale enterprise environments. UM worked on developing a comprehensive solution that leveraged Huawei's networking technologies to address these challenges.

Ngieng Sen Fon who represented Universiti Malaya expressed that while it had been challenging to compete with other top winners, the competition had equipped him with the right knowledge to improve further in this field.

“This competition has taught me to be more self-aware of my own experience and I know further knowledge is needed for self-improvement to be made. That is why I am so thankful that Huawei has provided references online that allowed us to do self-learning in a cohesive manner, which I think is rather useful for students who want to learn more,” said Ngieng.

Ngieng’s fellow team member, John Law Sie Giong, said that competitions like this had elevated his skills to a higher level through bouncing off ideas with other participants. “I got to meet other talented and like-minded people from various countries, gauge my level of skills, and develop my problem-solving methods as well. I believe competitions like this will help students to improve their experience in the computer network field, explore latest technology used in the industry, and be prepared to join the industry.”

Another team member, Desmond Kang Yuhang asserted that participating in this competition had, without a doubt, been immensely beneficial to himself and his fellow teammates.

“Although we faced stiff competition, we were confident in our project's potential to make a real difference in the industry. We had spent countless hours researching, testing, and refining our troubleshooting skills, and we believed it was a viable and effective solution to the challenges faced by modern networking environments,” said Kang.

Associate Prof. Ts. Dr. Ismail bin Ahmedy who was the trainer behind this successful win commended the positive development skills that the competition had imparted to his students.

“Although there were challenges faced while preparing for the competition, the team overcame them through sufficient resources by the Huawei ICT Academy and professional experts who they learned from. I am confident that Universiti Malaya’s students are capable of winning the global competition this year for they have the capability, talent and skills set that are on par with other participants,” said Associate Prof. Ts. Dr. Ismail.

Tay Bee Sim, from Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman, was also given a special accolade when she received the “Women in Tech” special prize, a category formed to encourage more female engagement in the ICT industry. Tay shared that the ICT field is difficult for women to master or infiltrate even though they are just as capable as men in contributing to the ICT field.

“Women's participation in the ICT industry needs to be improved, and one way to address this concern is by increasing awareness of gender equality in the workplace, encouraging more women to pursue STEM education and providing them with the necessary skills and training is crucial. Most importantly, the cultural and social barriers that prevent women from pursuing careers in the ICT field must be addressed to promote their enrolment in the industry,” said Tay.

Huawei launched the Huawei ICT Competition with the theme, 'Connection, Glory, and Future,’ in partnership with universities committed to cultivate talents for the ICT industry to effectively meet the demands of digital transformation. The Huawei ICT Competition serves as a powerful tool in this mission by empowering students and teachers to stay ahead of the curve and drive innovation in the industry. With cutting-edge technologies and platforms, Huawei is committed to ignite a spark of creativity and enhance students’ capacity for innovation.

This content is provided by SLPR.