Prof. Dr. Suresh Raj Sharma felicitated with Pioneer ICT Award
Kathmandu, Dec. 21
Prof. Dr. Suresh Raj Sharma has received
Pioneer ICT Award 2024 for his lifelong contributions to ICT education and
development. Minister for Communication and Information Technology, Prithvi
Subba Gurung felicitated Prof. Sharma with the award at a programme organised
in Kathmandu on Friday evening.
Nami Baral won the Nepali Diaspora ICT Award
in individual category while Manohar Adhikari received Entrepreneur ICT Award,
and Bandana Sharma was felicitated with Ncell Woman Icon ICT Award.
The ninth edition of the ICT Award 2024
followed over a dozen pre-events and a rigorous six-month selection process,
awards were presented in 15 different categories, informed the organiser of the
event, Living With ICT.
From the institutional category, Supreme
Court of Nepal won Digital Governance ICT Award, IME Pay got Digital Services
Award, and Sukuna Secondary School of Morang won Digital Education from public
sector and LRI School of Kathmandu from the private sector.
Sukuna Secondary School received a robotics
kit worth Rs. 50,000 from Dursiksha.
Likewise, various start-ups were also awarded
on the occasion. CrimsonTech won Startup award, API Management System received
Product award, SpeakUp Nepal got Rising Star Innovation award, and GeoKrishi
The Asia Foundation Social Innovation award.
SpeakUp Nepal received US$500 in Amazon Web
Services credits by Genese Solution.
The Public Choice ICT Award 2024 went to
Jyaap Services, while the South Asia Startup ICT Award 2024 was claimed by
India’s Hyphen SCS.
Addressing the event, Minister Gurung said
that the government has fallen short of expectations in the information
technology sector. "We declare an IT Decade but fail to allocate the
necessary budget. Nepal still lacks a single IT park," he said.
However, he assured the government's
commitment to improving infrastructure, reforming policies, and creating a
business-friendly environment for the private sector.
Amber Bahadur Thapa, Chair of the Education,
Health, and Technology Committee of the Federal Parliament, said that Nepal's
IT development lags behind global trends. Similarly, National Planning
Commission Vice Chair Prof. Dr. Shivaraj Adhikari stated that the ICT Award has
been instrumental in discovering talents from remote areas, with the government
prioritising IT and startups.
Likewise, ICT Award Chairperson Rajan Lamsal said
that the programme, active since 2016, has not only contributed to developing
Nepal's digital ecosystem but has also gained international recognition.
Similarly, seven outstanding startups, one
from each province, were honoured with the IFN Province Startup ICT Recognition
2024. These startups were selected following mentorship sessions, boot camps,
and industry visits held in Kathmandu. The winners include, Delta Tech from
Koshi, Tejas Tech from Madhes, Abhiyantrik Karmashala from Bagmati, Akash
Digital from Gandaki, Ninja Infosys from Lumbini, Business Online Services from
Karnali and Far-West Infotech and Research Centre from Sudurpaschim province.
This year, the ICT Award 2024 saw over 800
online nominations across 14 categories. A panel of 14 national and three
international jury members conducted more than 25 meetings to finalise the
winners.
Published in The Rising Nepal daily on 22 December 2024.
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