Dharmendra Pradhan, union minister, Education, Skill Development and Entrepreneurship has signed eight Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) between agencies of Ministries of Education and Skill Development and Entrepreneurship and IBM and delivered a keynote address on this occasion, according to an official release.
With its expansive and youthful populace, the nation is on the verge of immense potential. To tap into this demographic advantage, it is imperative to empower the younger generation with the essential competencies required to thrive in today’s contemporary job market. This partnership signifies a noteworthy step towards realising our vision of an ‘Empowered India,’ and it involves the expansion of digital skills training and proficiency development in emerging technologies through the IBM SkillsBuild platform, Pradhan stated. He remarked that the alliances formed today will significantly contribute to enabling our learners to fully leverage the potential of technology, transforming them into future generators of prosperity and entrepreneurs in our society, the release mentioned.
Under the terms of the MoU, specially crafted courses will be made available to empower the youth in India with skills that are geared towards the future. This partnership aims to emphasise the collaborative development of educational content to equip learners at various levels, including school education, higher education and vocational skills, with expertise in cutting-edge technologies such as AI (including generative AI), cybersecurity, cloud computing, as well as professional development skills, the release said.
IBM’s collaboration with the Ministry of Education (MoE) and the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) encompasses three key levels of education. In the realm of School Education, IBM claims to offer access to cutting-edge digital content from IBM SkillsBuild to high school students, teachers and trainers in select schools. This initiative aims to extend to schools identified by Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti (NVS), National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE), and Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan (KVS), with online programmes, webinars and in-person workshops conducted by IBM’s CSR implementation partners. Furthermore, IBM aims to revamp the AI curriculum for Grades 11th and 12th under the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) and develop cyber skilling and blockchain curricula for high school students, all to be hosted on IBM SkillsBuild, as per the release.
In the Higher Education sector, IBM, in collaboration with CSR partners, will closely cooperate with the Department of Higher Education, All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), National Institute of Electronics & Information Technology (NIELIT), National Institute of Technical Teachers’ Training & Research (NITTTR) in Chandigarh and state skilling missions. Their mission is to onboard affiliated students and faculty to IBM SkillsBuild, granting them access to digital content, experiential learning, and new skills that prepare them for technical careers, it added.
For Vocational Skills, IBM aims to maintain its central partnership with MSDE and collaborate with the Directorate General of Training (DGT) and respective state vocational education and skilling departments. Together, they will onboard job seekers, including long-term unemployed individuals and school dropouts, onto IBM SkillsBuild, equipping them with the necessary technical and professional skills for successful re-entry into the workforce, the release noted.
