eSkills for employment in Malta

• November 12, 2015
• admin

With the transformation of the economy through globalisation and the digital revolution, the demand for eSkills has been growing rapidly. People looking for jobs must have the relevant eSkills to compete in the marketplace. Nevertheless, a number of eSkills shortages, gaps, mismatches, as well as persistent digital divide are affecting productivity, growth, competitiveness, innovation, employment and social cohesion in Europe. Malta, like any other EU country needs to secure a sufficient professional eSkills base and to enable citizens to strengthen their eSkills in a process of effective lifelong learning.

The eSkills Malta Foundation, the National Coordinator of a European wide eSkills campaign spanning 2015/2016 is working together with the Government, industry and stakeholders to promote the EU eSkills strategy to fill digital skills shortages, gaps and mismatches and promote the adoption of best practices, tools and solutions, foster eLeadership and ICT professionalism. The main focus of the campaign, which is running in 21 European countries, is to raise awareness of the education, training, jobs, and other opportunities that are available to people with eSkills – those who know how to effectively use digital technologies. The participating countries are Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and the UK.

The Foundation is delivering a programme of events and communications activities to inform students, unemployed persons, ICT professionals and SMEs about the vast range of opportunities that ICT related jobs present.

The main aim of the campaign is to raise awareness of the need for citizens to improve their command of information and communication technology (ICT) skills for work. It is a response to the growing demand for ICT-skilled professionals which is currently not met. Employers are constantly struggling to find employees with the right ICT competencies for positions across the board and many students entering the market are unaware of the huge range of ICT jobs available in different industries, ranging from designers of games to programmers. Europe, including Malta might face a shortage of up to 825,000 ICT professionals by 2020, risking its potential for growth, social cohesion and digital competitiveness. The demand for ICT professionals is always on the rise, but the number of people graduating in computer studies, maths, science, technology and engineering are actually falling across Europe.

eSkills are vital for professionals working in small to medium size companies, for youth and the unemployed looking to enter the workforce. They are also important for companies that need a highly skilled workforce. At this point in time, eSkills are more crucial than ever to help get Europe’s economy back on its feet. People with strong eSkills will also play a central role in making Malta an innovative and competitive environment.

For more details about the campaign activities can be found by visiting the official central e-Skills campaign website http://eskills4jobs.ec.europa.eu/ and the Malta eSkills Foundation website on www.eskills.org.mt