IfG.CC -
Institute for eGovernment

The ECDL Foundation Forum, which this year was hosted in Dublin, is an annual event that brings together delegates from all continents to share knowledge and best practice around Information and Communication Technology (ICT) skills development, and the promotion of global digital literacy.

Speaking at a conference in Sofia, the EU commisioner for Europe’s so-called “Digital Agenda” said that, in the near future, almost all jobs will require “some kind of digital skills.” Demand for highly skilled ICT workers is already growing at 3 pc a year, she said.

Kroes warned that, because Europe isn’t providing enough IT skilled labor, there could be as many as 700,000 unfilled ICT vacancies by 2015.

The ICT sector in Europe is facing a massive skills shortage, with up to 700,000 unfilled jobs and declining competitiveness, the European Commission has warned.

While the number of digital jobs is growing by 3% each year, in spite of the economic downturn, the number of new ICT graduates and other skilled ICT workers is shrinking, according to EC figures.

Poor IT skills could stall Europe's economic recovery, according to figures released by the European Union (EU) today.

The annual digital agenda scoreboard showed that only half of the European workforce has sufficient IT skills for the jobs that are available. According to the figures only 43% of the EU population has medium or high internet skills and can, for example, "use the internet to make a phone call or create a web page." Almost a quarter have no ICT skills at all. It is estimated that ICT vacancies will number 700,000 by 2015.

In a press conference held at CeBIT, high-level representatives from three IT-related groups, which were DigitalEurope, an European information and communications technology (ICT) industry association, and BITKOM, the German ICT industry association, as well as a Bonn-based consulting firm "empirica," presented facts and figures about Europe's digital future.

Importantly, the study also asserts that digital transformation is not a purely technological process. Even when infrastructure and digital tools are available, their potential remains underused unless populations possess the necessary competencies to leverage them effectively. This interdependence between skills and technology underscores the human dimension of Europe’s digital future.

A new study examining Europe’s digital readiness warns that the European Union’s digital transformation could be hindered by uneven progress in digital skills and infrastructure. Despite steady advancements in connectivity and digital services, the gap between high-performing and lagging countries continues to expand, posing challenges for the bloc’s competitiveness and its Digital Decade 2030 targets.

7 million people work in the information and communication (ICT) sector in Europe. Out of the ICT workforce, just 30% are women.

The ICT sector is rapidly growing with the development of and demand for technology , creating around 120 000 new jobs every year. It has been predicted that there will be up to 900,000 unfilled ICT sector vacancies in 2015- a gap that, in the future, women could fill.

The European Commission(EC) is telling us that it is imperative that Information Communication Technology (ICT) is taught at schools and is taught well.

The EC has just completed a study of how ICT is taught across its member states. It is a mixed bag that has an assortment of findings.

In its study the EC found that most teachers recommended a "radical policy change", adding that there are still a large number of students with restricted access to computers and ICT equipment.

More evidence is accumulating that Europe has some big questions to answer when it comes to introducing IT properly to its millions of schoolchildren.

Thus only 25% of European nine-year-olds attend a school with up-to-date information and communications technology (ICT) equipment, broadband of 10 Mbps or higher and reasonable levels of connectivity -- e.g., email for students and teachers, any kind of virtual learning environments, local networks and so on, according to a European Commission study.

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) surveyed nearly 50,000 citizens, and found that the biggest cause of citizens’ unhappiness with government is the way that they are treated by officials.

The ICT sector currently represents 3% of European employment, 5% of European GDP, and 26% of research and development expenditure. It is therefore not surprising to understand the increased application of ICT solutions to many societal challenges such as: e-health, e-government and e-learning. Based on this trend, over the next five years it is estimated Europe will require an estimated 5 million ICT practitioners.

Federated learning is an innovative approach to machine learning that allows smart devices to learn from data while keeping it on the device, rather than sending it to a central server for processing. This decentralized approach not only enhances privacy and security but also enables more efficient use of resources, making it an ideal solution for smart cities and the Internet of Things (IoT) devices that power them.

Smart cities are urban areas that use technology and data to improve the quality of life for their citizens, optimize resource consumption, and enhance overall efficiency. IoT devices play a crucial role in smart cities, collecting and processing data from various sources such as traffic sensors, air quality monitors, and energy meters. This data is then used to make informed decisions and implement effective policies.

Omobola Johnson, Minister of Communication and Technology who stated this at the ministerial platform in Abuja, hinted that ICT in 2011 contributed over 5 percent to Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP)

The colloquium will be held at Gallagher Estate in Midrand on 19 and 20 April and is meant as the start of a process of reviewing all of government’s ICT policies.

News of the planned event comes just days after a new World Economic Forum report was published showing SA is performing particularly poorly as a connected nation, ranking behind Tunisia and Mauritius in Africa and placing 72nd in the world.

"But almost every career in every industry sector is being transformed by technology," followed Gove, stating that a range of work, "from farming to fashion, manufacturing to music" will depend on IT in the future.

So says Miles Berry, former chair of ICT education advisory association Naace, and subject leader for computing education at the University of Roehampton.

Berry told Computing that today's release includes "some corrections and a few improvements" on the DfE and secretary of state's last published draft back in February 2013.

According to the Joint Council for Qualifications, ICT GCSE entries rose to 87,788 candidates sitting the exam in 2013, compared with 70,420 in 2012. This is the first time the number of ICT candidates has risen since 2005.

The measures are planned to be brought into effect from the start of the new school year in 2014.

Developments include Key Stage 1 (five to seven year olds) being taught about the definition of algorithms, followed by creating and debugging simple computer programs, as well as being taught to recognise common uses of ICT beyond school.