ICDL GCC Foundation, the governing body of the ICDL programme in the GCC member states, is gearing up for a strong participation in Gitex Dubai 2005, where it will host leading ICDL solution providers that will showcase their latest ICDL approved products, including an accessibility testing solution for the Blind and the visually impaired, an automated solution for the ICDL Advanced programme, as well as content for the ICDL’s e-Citizen initiative, a certification programme that supports e-Government implementations in the region. The impressive ICDL pavilion will be located at Stand H8-I, Hall 8 of the exhibition.
“Our participation in GITEX is in line with our global policy to take part in all international events and conferences. We view GITEX as an ideal platform to highlight our new initiatives aimed at furthering IT literacy among all sections of the society, and introduce our vendor partners with their latest approved solutions for the ICDL programme” said Jamil Ezzo, Director General, ICDL GCC Foundation.
Following the Foundation’s recent initiative to extend the benefits of the ICDL programme to people with disability, efforts by leading vendors are being invested to develop accessibility training and testing solutions for the visually impaired. A co-development effort between NCC Education and Nattiq resulted in a bilingual automated test solution for the blind and the visually impaired. This solution was developed under the guidelines of ICDL and was reviewed by Tamkeen, a non-profit organisation that seeks to empower the blind and the visually impaired individuals through support, training and counselling.
The UAE was chosen to soft launch an Automated Test Solution for the ICDL Advanced, developed by NCC Education. The ICDL Advanced offers candidates who have completed their ICDL Core Certification the opportunity to move to the next level of training. While the core certification involves seven exams, the advanced programme contains four exams that can be taken separately, each with its own certification. The tests are designed to advance trainers’ skills and provide further competencies in database, presentation, spreadsheets and word processing packages.
ICDL GCC Foundation plans to introduce the e-Citizen programme, a European initiative designed to cater to individuals with limited knowledge of computers and the Internet. e-Citizen was developed to help citizens bridge the digital gap by giving them the necessary skills to participate online across a broad range of environments, from dealing with government departments to searching for information and buying products and services. By giving these online skills, citizens will have access to the life-enhancing aspects of the information society. ICDL GCC Foundation is currently working with various GCC government authorities to implement the e-Citizen programme on a national level.
The ICDL pavilion at GITEX will host a number of leading international ICDL vendors like the Arab Scientific Publishers (Sybex), CIA Training, ReDSOFT (Regional Centre for Development of Educational Software), Element K, Humansoft (Thomson NETg and Thomson Course Technology), NCC Education and Universal Knowledge Solutions (Teknical), that will demonstrate their latest solutions for the ICDL programmes.
