APCICT to roll-out ICT capacity development programmes in Azerbaijan; launch online version of ICTD for youth programme on the APCICT Virtual Academy; and deliver ICTD for youth workshop in Indonesia
APCICT and Azerbaijan partner to launch multi-stakeholder capacity building programmes
The Asian and Pacific Training Centre for Information and Communication Technology for Development, (UN-APCICT/ESCAP), will officially launch the “Primer Series on ICTD for Youth” (Primer Series) by organizing a training workshop in Baku, Azerbaijan.
In partnership with Azerbaijan’s Qafqaz University, APCICT is organizing a Primer Series Training of Trainers Workshop on 8-10 February for over 30 professors and educators from Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. Workshop participants will receive training on Primer 1: “An Introduction to ICT for Development”, which gives an introductory overview of how ICTs can be used to meet socio-economic development goals.
The Primer Series aims to serve as a tool to help educators deliver ICTD capacity building education in institutions of higher learning as recent research has indicated that university curricula lacks adequate content of ICT for development. The Primer Series is a part of APCICT’s flagship programme targeting youth, the “Turning Today’s Youth into Tomorrow’s Leaders Programme”, which works to develop a cadre of future leaders equipped with the capacity to use ICTs for achieving development goals.
Prior to the start of the Primer Series workshop, APCICT will partner with the Civil Service Commission of Azerbaijan to organize special briefing and tutoring sessions on the “Academy of ICT Essentials for Government Leaders” (Academy), APCICT’s flagship capacity building programme targeting government officials and development practitioners. On 6-7 February, over 30 senior policymakers will be introduced to the Academy programme, and 20 professionals will complete a tutoring session to help them serve as resource persons delivering Academy content in Azerbaijan.
Primer 1 goes live on the APCICT Virtual Academy
APCICT will also mark the official launch of the Primer Series by rolling-out Primer 1 on the Centre’s online, distance e-learning platform. During the opening session of the Primer Series workshop in Azerbaijan, Primer 1 will go live on the APCICT Virtual Academy. By launching Primer 1 on the APCICT Virtual Academy, APCICT will further support and extend the delivery of ICTD education content to youth around the world. The online version of Primer 1 is designed to reach youth anytime and anywhere.
The APCICT Virtual Academy was launched in June 2009, to facilitate and extend the reach of the Academy programme. All 9 Academy modules and accompanying materials including case studies, presentation slides and reading lists are made freely available on the APCICT Virtual Academy. The Virtual Academy enables learners to take self-paced courses online. These courses are based on the Academy modules and incorporate virtual lectures and quick quizzes. To date, there have been over 5,000 course enrollments in 116 countries on the APCICT Virtual Academy.
APCICT and partners in Indonesia organize ICTD for Youth workshop
Rounding out a month full of ICTD for youth activities, APCICT and the University of Indonesia will deliver a Primer Series Training of Trainers Workshop in Jakarta, Indonesia on 27-29 February. Over 30 professors and trainers from 5 universities in Indonesia and the National University of Timor-Leste, will receive training on Primer 1 and develop strategies to implement and deliver the resource to youth in their institutions.
