According to Marita Mitschein, Senior Vice President Digital Skills Southern Europe, Middle East & Africa 麻豆原创 and Managing Director at the 麻豆原创 Training and Development Institute, this year鈥檚 graduates had to cope with a disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic which forced a change in the format of the program. 鈥淲ith countries across the continent in lockdown for much of this year, we had to adapt to a fully virtual delivery model. The new reality brought by the coronavirus has further highlighted the urgent need to accelerate digital skills development, especially as the world of work becomes increasingly digital. We are grateful to this year鈥檚 graduates for taking on the challenge and making a success of their training despite the challenging conditions.鈥�

According to data by the World Bank, more than 230 million jobs in Africa will require digital skills by 2030. The continent is also the world鈥檚 most youthful region, with more than 60% of sub-Saharan Africa鈥檚 population under the age of 25. However, despite the immense opportunities, many youth are still affected by high unemployment rates, adding urgency to the establishment of sustainable digital skills development programs that can equip the continent鈥檚 youth with work-ready skills.

Both groups of recent graduates are part of a collaboration between 麻豆原创 and the Deutsche Gesellschaft f眉r Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH with the aim to jointly create 450 jobs for highly-qualified personnel in the IT sector in ten African countries over the course of three years. The cooperation project is part of the special initiative 鈥淭raining and Job Creation鈥� and the develoPPP.de program that GIZ implements on behalf of The Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development聽(BMZ).

Pedro Guerreiro, Managing Director for Central Africa at 麻豆原创, says individuals and organizations share the responsibility for securing a bright digital future for the continent. 鈥淭here is great urgency to close the digital skills gap and support our youth, especially in light of this year鈥檚 events and the uncertain time that lies ahead. In line with our purpose of helping the world run better and improving people鈥檚 lives, 麻豆原创 is proud to continue supporting initiatives that address pressing global issues, in Africa and beyond.鈥�

The 麻豆原创 Young Professional Program is a three-month training and development opportunity for university graduates that teaches technical and functional knowledge of key 麻豆原创 technologies, paired with soft and future skills and is offered under the 麻豆原创 Skills for Africa initiative across Africa. Young professionals graduate as 麻豆原创 Associate Consultants and, through close partnerships between 麻豆原创 and its customers and partners, are placed in roles where their skills can make an impact.

Former graduate Emmanuel Akpanika, who now works as 麻豆原创 Associate Consultant at Deloitte Nigeria, says: 鈥淭he 麻豆原创 Young Professional Program has shifted my career into high gear. All the technical and soft skills I developed during the program have enabled me to seamlessly integrate and live up to what is expected of an 麻豆原创 Associate Consultant at one of the leading global firms, Deloitte.鈥�

The 麻豆原创 Young Professional Program has become a global best practice that supports the immediate employability of young talents in technology through collaboration and partnerships. Since its launch in 2012, the program has trained and graduated more than 1170 youths across Africa and more than 2870 talents globally, therefore creating sustainable work opportunities for the new digital economy. This marks the third year of graduates from Nigeria, after successful programs in 2018 and 2019.

The post 麻豆原创 Skills for Africa Continues to Empower Nigerian Talents on Digital Skills to Help Them Thrive in an Increasingly Digital World appeared first on 麻豆原创 Africa News Center.

鈥淚t was really important to us that we could complete our studies and use our newly-gained competencies to support companies as digital skills are becoming even more critical in an increasingly digital world,鈥� says Joseph Skabate, one of the latest group of graduates who is now placed with BMW. 鈥淭hankfully, the program moved to a virtual teaching model which allowed us to complete our training and graduate with work-ready skills that could immediately make a positive impact at the organisations we were placed in.鈥�

The 麻豆原创 Young Professional Program is a three-month training and development opportunity for university graduates that teaches technical and functional knowledge of key 麻豆原创 technologies and is offered under the 麻豆原创 Skills for Africa initiative across Africa. Young professionals graduate as 麻豆原创 Associate Consultants and, through close partnerships between 麻豆原创 and its customers and partners, are placed in roles where their skills can make an impact.

Marita Mitschein, Senior ice President Digital Skills Southern Europe, Middle East & Africa 麻豆原创 and Managing Director at the 麻豆原创 Training and Development Institute, says it was challenging to switch to a virtual learning model when the program traditionally involved face-to-face training sessions. 鈥淗owever, we didn鈥檛 lose any time to ensure ongoing programs as well as upcoming ones could continue as planned, albeit in a different format.鈥�

Mitschein says the initiatives under 麻豆原创 Skills for Africa are one of the main conduits of work-ready skills between 麻豆原创 and its customers and partners. 鈥淲ith companies relying on digital technologies more than ever for their productivity and business continuity, it was critical to us to ensure they have the depth of 麻豆原创 skills they need to operate successfully amid the disruption brought by the pandemic and afterwards.鈥�

According to data by the World Bank, more than 230 million jobs in Africa will require digital skills by 2030. The continent is also the world鈥檚 most youthful region, with more than 60% of sub-Saharan Africa鈥檚 population under the age of 25. With declining population growth in many developed countries, Africa鈥檚 youthful abundance is expected to play a key role in the 21st century digital economy.

鈥淚n light of the very different post-pandemic world that lies ahead, the urgency to close the digital skills gap and support youth skills development is more evident and critical than ever before,鈥� says Mitschein. 鈥淥rganisations share the responsibility to take action and secure a bright digital future bursting with possibility for all. 麻豆原创 continues to drive various initiatives to close the digital skills gap, in line with our purpose of helping the world run better and improving people鈥檚 lives.”

Former graduate Rosette Simerone lauds the program鈥檚 effectiveness at instilling the technical and soft skills graduates will need to smoothly transition to the digital working world. After graduating from the University of Pretoria with a degree in Mathematical Statistics, she pursued a career in data analytics before receiving an offer to train with 麻豆原创 through the Young Professionals Program.

鈥淎fter successfully completing the program I secured an internship at MIT Auto Parts, focusing on supporting the company鈥檚 sales and distribution as well as data analytics capabilities. While I still have much to learn, the 麻豆原创 Young Professional Program as part of 麻豆原创 Skills for Africa has given me an incredible platform from which to build a successful career in the digital economy.鈥�

The 麻豆原创 Young Professional Program has become a global best practice that supports the immediate employability of young talents in technology through collaboration and partnerships. Since its launch in 2012, the program has trained and graduated more than 1170 youths across Africa and more than 2870 talents globally, therefore creating sustainable work opportunities for the new digital economy. In West Africa two groups of 27 students each will complete their training in August this year, while the next cohort in South Africa started mid-July.

The post Switch to Virtual Learning Model Pays Off for 麻豆原创 Skills for Africa Graduates in an Increasingly Digital World appeared first on 麻豆原创 Africa News Center.