VCL equips youth with digital skills

Telecommunication company, Vodacom Lesotho (VCL) has launched the Vodacom Digital Skills Hub, a platform designed to equip Basotho youth with essential digital skills.

This initiative, a collaboration with Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft, Skillsoft and other digital content providers, aims to upskill 300,000 young Basotho aged 16 to 35 in the next three years.
According to a statement issued by VCL this week, the initiative is part of a larger effort by the Vodacom Group to promote digital literacy and inclusion and to bridge the youth digital skills gap in eight African countries where Vodacom is operating.

The International Finance Corporation (IFC) projects that over 230 million jobs in Africa will require digital skills by 2030.

Despite this growing demand, Africa still grapples with a substantial shortage of people with the required digital expertise.

Commenting at the initiative’s launch, Vodacom Group’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Shameel Joosub, stated that many countries on the African continent are plagued by high levels of unemployment, gender inequality, income disparity and limited access to education, healthcare and essential services.

“These challenges inform our purpose and drive our strategy to connect for a better future, leveraging digital technologies to drive inclusion into the future for the betterment of people.

“The launch of the Digital Skills Hub is a testament to our commitment to pioneering the path to a digital and more inclusive Africa,” Joosub said.

Echoing the same sentiments, VCL’s CEO, Mohale Ralebitso, said: “Education serves as a solid foundation, marking the path towards societal progress as we navigate the complexities of an ever-evolving world. Therefore, it is incumbent upon us to safeguard and promote universal access to top-tier educational resources for the younger generation in this country and across the continent.

“The Digital Skills Hub has been meticulously crafted to nurture digital literacy skills among our youth, bestowing upon them a diverse array of competencies that are crucial for success in today’s dynamic and tech-driven job market,” Ralebitso observed.

For his part, chief human resources officer of Vodacom Group, Matimba Mbungela expressed his excitement to launch this initiative, which is designed to cultivate the next generation of digital innovators.

“Our primary goal is to simultaneously tackle Africa’s digital skills gap and foster a thriving pool of young talent. By doing so, we aim to propel Africa’s digital growth and create more empowering opportunities within an inclusive digital economy,” Mbungela noted.

In the context of Lesotho, the initiative aligns with Lesotho’s National Strategic Development Plan II, specifically the strategic objective on improving capabilities for ICT use. Therefore, providing digital skills training to youth will stimulate innovation, ignite passion for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) careers, develop a tech-savvy workforce and promote economic growth.

The programme’s content entails an extensive repository of self-paced online courses that cover a wide range of topics, including cloud operations, machine learning, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, information security and many others. The Hub is now live and accessible on Vodacom Lesotho’s website.