Huawei committed an additional $150 million to support talent development over the next five years, with the funds expected to benefit more than 3 million people in the countries where it operates.

Speaking at the company’s Tech and Sustainability: Everyone’s Included forum, Huawei chairman Liang Hua (pictured) explained its Seeds for the Future Programme 2.0 is designed to help college students and young people improve their digital skills.

Such capabilities “are not just the foundation for the digital economy, they are also a basic human right defined by the United Nations”, he said.

Huawei rolled out its first talent development programmes in 2008, offering scholarships, and holding technology competitions and training. In a statement, the company explained it had invested more than $150 million, benefitting some 1.5 million people in 150 countries..

The event was co-hosted by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, with representatives from Huawei; the World Economic Forum; the Carbon Disclosure Project; the Global Enabling Sustainability Initiative; and the Singapore Institute of International Affairs.

Huawei also released its 2020 sustainability report, which highlighted it worked with 93 of its top 100 suppliers to set carbon emission reduction targets and generated 12.6 million kWh of electricity through photovoltaic power plants on its campuses.