ITU, ILO launch campaign to train five million youth

NEW DELHI: The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and the International Labour Organization (ILO) have launched a campaign to train five million young people globally by 2030.

The announcement was made at the World Summit on the Information Society Forum 2017 being held 12-16 June 2017, in Geneva.

The “Digital Skills for Decent Jobs Campaign” is part of the “Global Initiative on Decent Jobs for Youth”, the first-ever, comprehensive United Nations system-wide effort for the promotion of youth employment worldwide.

“ITU is proud to be one of the founding members of the ‘Global Initiative on Decent Jobs for Youth’,” said ITU Secretary-General Houlin Zhao. “The ‘Digital Skills for Decent Jobs for Youth Campaign’ seeks to encourage the global community to provide youth worldwide with digital skills training in order to foster decent and inclusive employment and entrepreneurship opportunities. Acquiring digital skills is crucial for young job seekers worldwide as it can lead to higher salaries and better employment conditions.”

Brahima Sanou, Director of the ITU Telecommunication Development Bureau (BDT) said, "Digital skills will connect young people with unprecedented job opportunities and contribute to the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals. Estimates show there will be at least 10 million vacant jobs globally for people with advanced digital skills between now and 2030."

The campaign will engage with governments, the private sector and other stakeholders in the information and communication technology sector to realize commitments to train young men and women in basic and advanced digital skills. The campaign will also encourage widespread sharing of data on job openings for youth with digital skills, and help to identify training programmes and resource mobilization opportunities.

The "Digital Skills for Decent Jobs for Youth Campaign" is part of the ILO's "Global Initiative on Decent Jobs for Youth" – a multi-stakeholder partnership for the promotion of youth employment worldwide, through which 22 United Nations entities are joining hands in support of the realization of the 2030 development agenda.