ICDL, UAE Academy expand their collaboration to spread cyber safety awareness among general public

The renewed partnership entails the leverage of UAE's academy's unique relationship with the Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry to entice corporate citizens to engage in CSR funded initiatives involving digital and cyber safety awareness aimed at the general public.

The UAE Academy has been working alongside ICDL since 2006 and cites this relationship as a key factor to establishing itself as a significant contributor to Emiratisation efforts in Abu Dhabi.

The expansion of the partnership will also entail the UAE Academy delivering e-Citizen Readiness and IT Security curricula on behalf of ICDL, to government employees, organizations such as the Women's Union and member organizations of the Abu Dhabi Chamber.

The fact that the ICDL program is already an essential requirement for the majority of government organizations meant that growing the relationship was a natural next step.

The UAE Academy has drawn on its own vast academic experience to select the ICDL syllabus as it adheres to its strict quality and certification standards.

ICDL on its part has spent a vast amount of time and resources in creating its exclusively integrated learning portfolio specifically aimed at the Arab world, with contributions from internationally renowned educationalists and qualification authorities.

Dr Abdullah Abonamah, Acting CEO of the UAE Academy, stated, "We help fresh graduates and professionals with the relevant skills to compete in today's job market as well as by helping to create a healthy and robust private sector through a knowledge based economy. We have a long running relationship with ICDL, and we are pleased to jointly promote these new offerings so that every member of the society is safely participating and reaping the benefits of the cyber world. We will continue to collaborate together by keeping abreast of emerging trends and introduce new programmes to address these needs for the future."

Mr Jamil Ezzo, Director General of ICDL GCC, added, "We are honoured to take our partnership with the UAE Academy to the next level with the implementation of our e-Citizen and Cyber Safety initiatives. We share the same values and goals - the core of which is a commitment to equip GCC nationals with the necessary ICT skills to help them in their professional and private lives, whether they are job seekers, professional employees, students, teachers or parents. The expansion of our relationship is testament to our focus on quality in everything we do."

The UAE Academy is a subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry, it offers a unique set of integrated programmes of skill development.

The programs include Emiratisation solutions for Emirati job seekers and working professionals, research and development, management consulting, training, education and entrepreneurship initiatives.

Its long list of distinguished clients include many government ministries and departments including Federal National Council, the Crown Prince's court, law enforcement bodies like Abu Dhabi Police, Dubai Police, and corporations like ADCO, GASCO, Dubai Islamic Bank and First Gulf Bank.

The ICDL GCC Foundation has been spearheading the spread of digital knowledge and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), through internationally recognized certification programmes across the region for over a decade.

It has empowered nearly a million individuals, from various social groups, with essential skills to learn, work and live in today's increasingly connected world.