Hewlett-Packard signs agreement to train government personnel in Egypt

Dr. Tarek Kamel, Minister of Communication and Information Technology, Dr. Hatem El Gabaly, Minister of Health and Housing, Dr.Yousry Al Gamal, Minister of Education and Mr. Ken Willet, Vice Chairman of Hewlett-Packard for North Africa, the Middle East and the Mediterranean Basin, attended the signing of a joint agreement. These new sectors were included in this existing agreement to benefit from the ongoing initiatives that include the ICDL certificate, in order to develop increased computer literacy within the different sectors.

Dr. Tarek Kamel stated that "the MCIT is committed to carrying out its strategy through its comprehensive program to train young people, graduates and employees in the various government sectors. The MCIT is working in cooperation with all ministries, agencies and bodies in order to meet the needs of the labor market in information technology, and to facilitate the needs and demands of the rapid growth in this sector; as well as to raise the efficiency and competitiveness of the Egyptian work force in the global market."

He added that "The strategy of this program is to develop computer competency levels in Egypt to meet global competitiveness, and create a foundation of Egyptian workers are that highly skilled in information technology, now viewed to be as one of the sources of increased national income in Egypt, through the presence of a highly skilled Egyptian labor force both at home and abroad, and developing their basic IT skills in order to make Egypt a key player in global competitiveness in this area."

Mr. Ken Willet, Vice Chairman of Hewlett-Packard for North Africa, the Middle East and the Mediterranean Basin elaborated that "this agreement comes as a part of the ongoing efforts of Hewlett-Packard (HP), the global leading company in technology solutions. We hope to expand the scope of this cooperation to include more government ministries in Egypt. HP is considered to be at the forefront of the market for consumer technology solutions and offers a wide range of services for the different sectors."

This agreement comes as part of the ICDL program, that is being implemented by the MCIT in cooperation with UNESCO and the ECDL / ICDL Foundation, and which aims to ensure that 1 million people acquire the ICDL certificate within the coming five years. To date, the number of recipients of the ICDL is 145, 000 - all of which are secondary school leavers and holders of higher certificates, as well as secondary school pupils, teachers, school administrators, university students, faculty and administrators at Egyptian universities, and government workers and the public sector.

The Ministries of Communication and Information Technology, Education, Higher Education and Scientific Research, and Minister of State for Administrative Development Project, participated in this program which aims to eradicate computer illiteracy amongst all ages and groups, and to raise the level of IT knowledge in the different segments of society. It also aims to raise the productivity of all employees who use computers in their work to achieve a better return on investment in the IT sector.

It is noteworthy that the ICDL certificate is an internationally recognized certificate that is used in more than 144 countries to ensure the necessary high IT standards of workers in their business place. The ICDL has become a key requirement worldwide in many countries in Europe, Asia and the Americas for the completion of various levels of education, job promotion, eligibility for scholarships and even job recruitment. In addition to this, the holder of the ICDL will be equipped with sufficient knowledge in the use of information technology tools to optimal effect. The ICDL certificate comprises of seven tests in basic computer skills.

By purchasing the ICDL program from the ECDL / ICDL Foundation, the MCIT became the Egypt government's representative in providing the ICDL to all segments of society, particularly schoolchildren, university students, government and ministry employees. The tests will be carried out free of charge, while the test cards will be made available for a token fee. The program will be carried out under the supervision of UNESCO who will be maintaining quality control.

The agreement was signed by Dr. Ekram Fathy, Senior Advisor to the Minister of Telecommunication and Information Technology for Human Resources and Training, and Mr. Ahmed Samy, Managing Director of Hewlett-Packard Egypt.