Saudi Aramco joins development of information technology academy

Saudi Aramco, the state-owned oil company of Saudi Arabia, recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with multiple organizations to develop a National Information Technology Academy.
 
“Today, we have among us leaders in the ICT market who come with a strong corporate social responsibility,” said Yousef Al Ulyan, information technology executive director at Saudi Aramco. “Through strategic partnerships and collective efforts, we will effectively enable the academy to meet its objectives and bridge gaps where approximately 35 percent of the ICT labor market is missed — primarily for not having the right skill mix in the ICT workforce."
 
Organizations involved in the MoU include the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT), the Communications and Information Technology Commission (CITC), the Technical and Vocational Training Corporation (TVTC),  and companies such as Oracle, IBM, Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft, Huawei, Wipro, SAP, Cisco and Mobily.
 
“The National IT Academy facilitates the creation of a thriving, diversified economy that will provide higher economic profits and ample opportunities for higher education, training and development, and entrepreneurship,” Nabil K. Al Dabal, general manager of training and development at Saudi Aramco, said.
 
Al Dabal said the next steps in the process involve developing a board of trustees and a tech steering committee.