Recent research from Cisco found that Ireland could add €28bn to its economy by 2030 if its digital infrastructure was more efficient.
Cisco Ireland has today (21 October) said it plans to increase the amount of people it reaches with its digital skills programme.
To date, 30,000 Irish people have benefitted from Cisco Networking Academy. The digital skills programme was set up in 1997, two years before Cisco established a site in Ireland.
The US-headquartered IT giant aims to provide digital skills training to 25m people over the next 10 years, preparing them for in-demand jobs.
Cisco Networking Academy provides IT courses and hands-on learning opportunities via a learning platform to support learners in 190 countries, including Ireland. To date, more than 17.5m global learners have taken Cisco Networking Academy courses.
The decision to expand the academy’s presence in Ireland has been informed by research Cisco commissioned from the Centre for Economics and Business Research. It found that Ireland could potentially add €28bn to its economy by 2030 if its digital infrastructure was more efficient and inclusive of all people and sectors.
Shane Heraty, managing director of Cisco Ireland and Scotland, said: “Whilst great progress continues to be made, to ensure that everyone is able to benefit from the opportunity in a digital society, we need industry to collaborate with education to help offer more comprehensive computer science education.”
Cisco Networking Academy also announced a partnership with IT company Experis. This partnership will offer learning pathways for areas such as IT, cybersecurity, networking, programming and data, where the demand for skilled workers is far outpacing supply. It aims to place 1,000 people in new IT roles in its first year.
As part of its Networking Academy, Cisco also recently launched a free, mobile-first programme called Skills For All. It delivers self-paced courses, interactive tools and career resources that are designed by industry experts.
More information on Cisco Networking Academy is available on the website.
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