As technology group Cisco’s long-standing global information technology (IT) skills-to-jobs programme, Networking Academy, celebrates 25 years, it has announced new ambitions of providing digital skills training to 25-million learners over the next ten years.
With the expected creation of 97-million new jobs by 2025, amid advances in technology and automation, Cisco aims to bolster the skills of millions of people worldwide, helping them gain access to those jobs.
Since the Cisco Networking Academy was founded in 1997, over 17.5-million global learners have taken Cisco Networking Academy’s certification-aligned courses to gain digital skills, with 95% of the students attributing obtaining a job or education opportunity to the academy.
The programme provides high-quality IT courses, learning simulators and hands-on learning opportunities through a learning platform to support instructors and engage learners in 190 countries.
In sub-Saharan Africa, more than 1.07-million people have been trained and upskilled to date.
During the 2022 financial year, more than 345 000 people were enrolled in Cisco Networking Academy courses across 50 countries in the region supported by about 2 427 instructors from 906 academies in sub-Saharan Africa.
Across the 50 academies in Kenya, 104 978 people received digital skills training, while in Nigeria, the 228 academies trained 411 194 people.
In South Africa, 189 272 people were upskilled across 172 academies.
“It is clear that the programme is well-positioned to provide skills training to prepare the region for in-demand digital jobs,” says Cisco sub-Saharan Africa MD Hani Raad.
“The 2022 cohort shows that the programme is growing from strength to strength, increasing its ability to train people at scale. There are currently 123 132 people enrolled in Nigeria and 29 558 enrolled in Kenya.”
Further, the Networking Academy is making significant progress towards the meaningful inclusion and upliftment of women in the technology industry, with 61% of the 2022 intake of 82 219 students in South Africa female and out of a total of 1 127 instructors, 574 are female.
“We are very proud of the Cisco Networking Academy’s regional achievements where they have succeeded in bridging digital divides for underrepresented and underserved communities with partners who share the same values,” he says, highlighting partnerships with educational institutions, governments, corporations and nongovernmental organisations.
As the Cisco Networking Academy continues to grow and promote new training and education opportunities, with a goal of empowering 25-million global learners with digital and cybersecurity skills over the next 10 years, it plans to leverage the latest programmes and partnerships essential to developing the digital skills needed for an inclusive future.
These include the recently launched Skills for All, which is a free, mobile-first programme that delivers leading-edge learning experiences, including self-paced courses, interactive tools and career resources that are designed by industry experts.
Another programme is a new cybersecurity learning pathway producing an entry-level certification that equips learners with the skills needed to secure entry-level security jobs in the fast-growing security industry sector.
Further, Cisco plans to leverage its continued development of partnerships with governments, including Cisco’s commitment at the National Cyber Workforce and Education Summit in July 2022 to train an additional 200 000 students in the US over the next three years, and partnerships with nonprofit organisations and academic institutions to bring more courses and opportunities to learners around the world.