ECDL Foundation and its network of national operators are involved in hundreds of projects working with local, national, and international actors throughout the world to deliver digital literacy to the wider public. Here is a small selection of these projects:
United Arab Emirates In line with H.H.Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid 's vision, to ‘Enhance education by using IT’, ITEP fostered educational reform in the region by moving towards e-learning and creating an abundance of IT literate students, teachers, administrators and parents. The ITEP project thus helped to create an IT literate community. Click here to read this case study.
Egypt "The Egyptian government has signed an agreement with ECDL Foundation in May 2006 in which the Egyptian government would like to have at least one million Egyptians ICDL certified over 5 years." Representative of the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology
e-Citizen for the Elderly, Ireland ECDL Foundation in association with Age Action Ireland and the Irish Computer Society completed a project to discover the benefits of e-Citizen certification in Ireland. Click here to watch a video about this project.
Chile Unlimited Youth project is an ICT training and certification programme for poor and unemployed youth in Chile. Candidates receive a 50 hours ICDL training course and a test to become ICDL certified. A special Training Manual has been developed to assure the quality of the training in different non-governmental organisations (NGOs). This is a three year programme. Microsoft Chile finances 33% of the programme, while ICDL Chile’s role is to involve other private and public partners to finance the rest of the project. Click here to read this case study.
Italy In February 2008, the Region of Valle d’Aosta launched the “Un computer in famiglia” initiative, which aims to increase the number of computers and the use of the Internet for families in the region. The project targets families with young children in particular, and helps them develop computer skills and to use their newly acquired skills in a productive manner. The project provides a grant of €700 (partially financed by the European Social Fund) to any family legally resident in Valle d’Aosta with a child aged between 11 and 17 years old, for the purchase of a computer with Internet capability. The 6,500 beneficiaries will also receive a free copy of the e-Citizen kit, distributed in partnership with AICA (Associazione italiana per l’informatica ed il calcolo automatico).
e-Sri Lanka Project In November 2002, the Government of Sri Lanka launched “e-Sri Lanka”, a national development initiative, with the objective of using Information and Communication Technology (ICT) to foster social integration, peace, economic growth and poverty reduction. Click here to read this case study.
South African Prisons In February 2007, Shuttleworth Foundation recommended the International Computer Driving Licence (ICDL) to the Department of Correctional Services as one effective tool to up-skill the ex-offenders and empower them with employment opportunities. Click here to read this case study.
Irish Defence Forces “The ECDL establishes a verifiable standard for everyone who uses a computer, in either a professional or personal capacity,” Captain Miriam McCann, Directorate of Communications and Information Services told an official Irish Defence Forces publication. “It certifies competence, states the skills attained, and prepares the individual for participation in the Information Society.”
UNHCR In April 2007, UNHCR initiated a joint project with ITU (International Telecommunication Union) and Coopération Française, in Burundi. The main objectives were to provide returnees with high quality IT training, and to enable Burundian returnees from the Muyinga province to access information and communication tools.
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