Parties-Phantoms, Parties - State Institutions, Parties - State Enterprises

20 parties have registered in the current election campaign. Many people say it is a too big number for such a small country as Moldova. At the same time, much more parties could take part in the election campaign.

Activists launch Moldova’s first ‘Space Camp’ © Susan Coughtrie

Microsoft warns of growing ICT skills gap

Headlines

• "Moldova Azi" information portal is changing its format and editorial content, Centrul pentru Jurnalism Independent, 8 August 2011, 15:19
• Moldovan students queue up to apply for scholarships in Romania, Info-Prim Neo, 4 August 2011, 13:44
• Ukrainian scholarships not very popular in Moldova, Info-Prim Neo, 2 August 2011, 14:58
• Kent Larson: USAID will always support process of Moldova democratization, INFOTAG, 1 August 2011, 13:42
• Parliament sets up new commission - for checking civil servants' property and incomes, INFOTAG, 29 July 2011, 9:00
• Scandal in Moldovan parliament over deputies' relatives, INFOTAG, 29 July 2011, 9:00

Larger text

Photo: masterdinnova.com

The vast majority of vacancies across almost all sectors will demand computer literacy as a minimum requirement by 2015, sparking fears that those who lose their jobs during the current recession will become permanently unemployable.

The study of 13 European countries published yesterday (1 December), sponsored by Microsoft and carried out by research firm IDC, found that 58% of employers believe the education sector is not doing enough to prepare young for the modern workplace.

Training for advanced ICT skills will grow significantly over the next three to five years, according to the report, which highlights the importance of certification for ICT professionals.

In addition, it says the majority of the workforce will need their skills updated if they are to use technology to enhance productivity.

'On-the-job' training may not be enough

Marianne Kolding, vice-president of European Services Research at IDC, said a higher proportion of jobs in Central and Eastern Europe currently require no ICT skills at all. However, she said these countries will catch up with Western Europe over the next five years.

This, said Kolding, illustrates the need for investment in training the workforce but she expressed scepticism about the true value of 'on-site' and 'on-the-job' training, suggesting professional educators are best-placed to teach new skills.

She added that while the younger generation are adept at working with user-friendly gadgets, they often do not have a fundamental understanding of how these technologies work.

There is also significant concern that the competition posed by emerging Asian economies will put serious pressure on the higher-end of Europe's ICT sector due to the volume of engineering graduates being churned out by India and China.

"ICT undergraduates need to enter the workforce with much stronger business understanding and soft skills, as well as knowledge of leading-edge technology such as cloud computing and Web 2.0," Kolding said.

The research is based on interviews with business leaders in several sectors, and a web-based survey of almost 1,400 employers across Europe. The participants were drawn primarily from organisations with fewer than 500 employees.