Cisco to empower 25 million people with digital skills over next ten years

Through its Cisco Networking Academy program, Cisco has announced a goal of providing digital skills training to 25 million learners worldwide over the next ten years. Due to advances in technology and automation, 97 million new jobs will be created by 2025, and Cisco is assisting millions of people around the world in gaining access to those jobs by empowering the workforce of the future with education and career opportunities through its Networking Academy.

Cisco Networking Academy, founded in 1997, is celebrating its 25th anniversary and remains one of the world’s longest-running IT skills-to-jobs programs. Cisco Networking Academy uses a learning platform to support instructors and engage learners in 190 countries by providing high-quality IT courses, learning simulators, and hands-on learning opportunities. Over 17.5 million global learners have taken Cisco Networking Academy courses to improve their digital skills to date. Furthermore, 95% of students who took Cisco certification aligned courses attributed their job or educational opportunity to Cisco Networking Academy.

Cisco Networking Academy’s Impact Across the Middle East and Africa

More than 2.68 million students have been trained and upskilled in the Middle East and Africa since the introduction of Cisco Networking Academy, with 33% being female. Six of the top ten countries for female participation in the program since its inception are in the Middle East and Africa.

Over 706,000 students enrolled in Cisco Networking Academy courses across 67 countries in the region during Cisco’s fiscal year 2022 alone. Around 4,500 instructors supported these students across 1,770 academies in the Middle East and Africa.

Reem Asaad, Vice President, Cisco Middle East and Africa commented, “We are very proud of Cisco Networking Academy’s achievements in the region, which would not have been possible without the support of the academies and instructors. Across the region, students have demonstrated their enthusiasm to gain IT skills and benefit from such lifelong learning opportunity to get prepared for the future of work. As the pace of digitization accelerates across the Middle East and Africa, we’re constantly working with national leadership, industry, and academia to expand Cisco Networking Academy’s reach to upskill future generations and unlock full potential of the region.” 

As Cisco Networking Academy expands and promotes new training and education opportunities, it will leverage the most recent programs and partnerships that are critical in developing necessary digital skills and ensuring an inclusive future, such as:

• The recent launch of Skills for All, a free, mobile-first program that delivers leading-edge learning experiences, including self-paced courses, interactive tools, and career resources that are designed by industry experts. A new cybersecurity learning pathway culminating in an entry-level certification to provide learners with skills to earn entry-level security jobs in the fast growing security industry sector. 
• Continued development of partnerships with governments such as Cisco’s commitment at the National Cyber Workforce and Education Summit in July 2022 to train an additional 200,000 students in the U.S. over the next three years; as well as partnerships with non-profits and academic institutions to bring more courses and opportunities to learners around the world.

For more details on Cisco’s latest commitment and the Network Academy, please visit: www.netacad.com