Nairobi — Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) firm Sama, starting this week, will start hiring 600 Kenyans to work in computer vision AI.

An additional 1,500 from the country will also be hired next week, Investments, Trade, and Industrialization CS Moses Kuria announced on his X (formerly Twitter) page.

Computer vision AI is a branch of artificial intelligence (AI) that allows computers to interpret digital images and videos before directing them what to do.

Kuria said the firm's decision to recruit locals is attributed to the government's efforts to scale up job creation in the BPO sector.

"Wendy Gonzelez, CEO at World leading BPO giant Samasource has just informed me that following the recent government efforts to create 1 Million BPO jobs in Kenya, they will this week hire 600 Kenyans and another 1500 in the next two weeks to work on Computer Vision AI," posted Kuria.

"I have assured Wendy that they have made the right decision," he added.

Recently, the state has been pushing to open more ICT hubs in the country to create job opportunities for Kenyan youth.

"I have heard their concerns, and I can confirm that the Government will relentlessly work to address operating challenges affecting Kenya's competitiveness in the global market," said ICT Principal Secretary John Tanui earlier.

"The Government is committed to securing these 2,500 jobs by Sama as we race to formulate the necessary policies and regulations to accelerate the growth of players in the BPO sector," he added.