Safaricom has announced plans to recruit 62 interns by January 2017 as it progresses its agenda to woo more women to the technology field.

The internships will target 40 female university students under its Women In Technology initiative, with a further 18 internships open to all university applicants and an additional four internships that will be filled through the Association for the Physically Disabled of Kenya.

“Our technology internship program is built on the knowledge that in order to continue Transforming Lives, we must continue to invest in building capacity to manage cutting edge technologies,” said Thibaud Rerolle, Director – Technology, Safaricom

Internships are open to Kenyan applicants, preferably those in their 3rd to 5th year of study in ICT related fields including Computer Science, Information Technology, Electrical and Electronics Engineering or Telecommunications Engineering. Applicants must not have graduated.

Successful applicants will job shadow Safaricom engineers in their roles, before being assigned practical projects and duties. Applications for all internships are open on the Safaricom Careers portal and will close on 28th November 2016.

Started in 2013, Safaricom’s Women In Technology initiative has contributed to more female engineers joining Safaricom, lifting the ratio of female to male engineers in the company from 9% in 2013 to 20% today. To date, more than 320 students have undergone the technology internships with Safaricom absorbing 22 former interns to full-time positions with more than 30 others employed by other industry players.