Finland govt to train one million Pakistani students on disruptive technologies

Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiative Asad Umar chaired the signing ceremony of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the governments of Finland and Pakistan, launching an initiative to train one million students on disruptive technologies.

This is the first and the largest Mass Information Technology (IT) Education Programme in collaboration with the Finland government. It will be managed by the Kajaani University of Applied Sciences, Finland, Allied ICT Finland and Virtual University (VU) of Pakistan and a local partner, Integration Xperts (IX), will provide technical expertise.

Former minister for information technology and telecommunication Dr Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui was also present on the occasion, accompanied by senior officials of the Ministry of IT and Telecommunication, Kajaani University CEO Matti Saren, Rector VU Naeem Tariq and other officials.

Siddiqui thanked the Finland government for their support. “This initiative reflects the Pakistan government’s commitment to enrich the economy with an additional qualified workforce of one million youngsters educated on European professional standards to learn special skill sets. It will enable them to capitalise on the latest trends evolving in IT. With their globally recognised certifications, the students will strengthen Pakistan’s IT industry by nurturing a wide range of technology startups.”

“Pakistan will gain a competitive advantage in the global freelance workspace, to become an attractive destination for international companies searching for qualified technology experts.”

President and CEO of the Kajaani University, Matti Saren, said that the Economist Intelligence report had declared Finland as the best countries in the world for future skills education while the Programme for International Student Assessment also ranked Finland as the best higher education and training systems in the world.

Since last year, the Vendor Junction and Integration Xperts had been exploring ways to access the highest quality of mass education, technologies and ideas. By following the proven system of Finland, millions of Pakistanis would now become experts in the global business environment. European enterprises were also being engaged to identify investment opportunities.

Director International Education Cooperation, Kajaani University, Anas Al Natsheh said resourceful international collaborations and digital technologies were enabling access to quality education across the globe, nurture innovations, new ideas and products.