60,331 trained in first batch under ‘Digiskills Programme’

Islamabad: Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunications has enrolled 60,331 persons out of 64,332 registered trainees in first batch of ‘Digiskills Programme’, launched to provide opportunity to gain marketable digital skills. The digital skills can transform them into successful freelancers, employees and entrepreneurs.

Official sources said this programme is also aimed at equipping our youth, freelancers, students, professionals, etc. with knowledge, skills, tools and techniques necessary to seize the opportunities available in online job market places.

"Our educated youth, women and others are an immense and mostly untapped resource. This programme realises that potential so that individuals and their community may reap the benefits and ultimately growth will be represented in a flourishing national economy," the sources said.

The sources said first batch of trainees has already been started from August 1 and training courses are available at a user-friendly web portal amid a comprehensive online Learning Management System at all times. An online mechanism has also been developed to engage trainees and track their performance through intelligent assessment, the sources added.

They said courses are designed by local industry leaders and experts in collaboration with online learning veterans at Virtual University while other execution partners include MCOM and Semiotics. There are a total of seven batches planned under the programme, the first batch is offering courses in Freelancing, Digital Marketing, e-Commerce Management and Digital Literacy.

The upcoming courses include Search Engine Optimisation (SEO), AutoCAD, WordPress, QuickBooks, Graphics Design and Creative Writing. The enrolment for courses under second Batch will start from November 1 this year and training classes for the purpose will commence a month before (December 1, 2018).

Around one million people are planned to be trained under this large scale national training Programme, using technology and comprising seven batches. Pakistan, being fourth largest provider of online freelancers in the world, is earning around $500 million to $1.3 billion annually as number of online freelancers is increasing with every passing month.

Millions of individuals around the world are tapping into opportunity and earning money while working from comfort of their homes. The digital skills industry, often referred to as online outsourcing, is expected to generate gross service revenue between $15 billion and $25 billion by 2020.Most of the work done is for international clients, therefore, money earned by them is brought into the country, mainly as foreign remittances.