Morocco’s Office of Vocational Training and Labor Promotion Supports Cisco Networking Academy Program

Cisco and Morocco’s Office of Vocational Training and Labor Promotion host Successful ‘Arabian Adventure Roadshow’ for North African Networking Academy Community

CASABLANCA, Morocco 15 June 2011 – Cisco joined forces with the Morocco Office of Vocational Training and Labor Promotion (OFPPT) recently to host the third  annual ‘Arabian Adventure Roadshow’ for the North Africa region.

This year’s event gathered together hundreds of representatives from the Cisco® Networking Academy® community from all over North Africa. Delegates were provided with the opportunity to learn what networking academies are doing to promote regional networking, create sustainable academy communities, collaborate and drive the Information Communications Technology (ICT) education forward in this important region.

Highlights / Key Facts:

• In a challenging economic climate, knowledgeable people and companies have a clear competitive edge. The ‘Arabian Adventure Roadshow’ is an investment that pays long-term dividends by offering the knowledge and skills that the Networking Academy community as well as partners throughout the region need to make a powerful difference in their workplace and industry. The event provided a forum for delegates to exchange thoughts and interact with Cisco experts on different matters, as well as network and enhance their business development activities.
• The Networking Academy program in North Africa Levant  has witnessed the highest growth among all regions of the Cisco Networking Academy program for the past two years.
• The main event incorporated program updates on the new curricula, including technical, administrative and training updates; retraining sessions for instructors; guidance to academies in effectively managing their business; Workforce Development and Student Advocacy training, and exposure to future trends in networking offerings.

• The Networking Academy program provides ICT skills to students globally to improve their career and economic opportunities. It operates in high schools, colleges, universities, technical and military schools, community-based organisations, and government bodies. Its curriculum combines the theory and practice of designing, developing and implementing the networks that underpin businesses and other organisations. In addition, its advanced technology curricula in areas such as security, wireless and Internet Protocol (IP) telephony provide exposure to the latest technology skills in those fields. It also has a module teaching computer technician skills.

Executive Quotes:

• Mr. Larbi Benchikh, general manager of the Office of Vocational Training and Job Promotion(OFPPT)

“Morocco is experiencing tremendous IT growth, and it is critically important that we equip our youth, the employees of the future, with the right skills to enable them to respond to the changing needs of our society.We realise that a strong ICT infrastructure alone, cannot drive socio-economic progress; it is a holistic approach that also includes the development of word-class talent in all markets, which is essential to help the population use advanced Internet-based networks to their full potential.”

• Hassan Bahej, general manager, Cisco Morocco

“We are delighted that the Office of Vocational Training and Labor Promotion understands the vital contribution that the Cisco Networking Academy program is making towards providing ICT skills to improve career and economic opportunities for everyone in Morocco. With  nearly 8,000 students enrolled in the program in Morocco today, together we are taking significant strides towards improving the future for our citizens. The Networking Academy provides a long-term solution in the form of creating a highly skilled and well-trained local work force. This is critical for accelerating and sustaining economic growth.”

Links / URLs:

• Emerging Markets RSS Feed:

http://newsroom.cisco.com/data/syndication/rss2/EmergingMarkets.xml

• News@Cisco in Africa: http://newsroom.cisco.com/africa
• RSS Feed for Cisco:http://newsroom.cisco.com/dlls/rss.html
• For more details the Cisco Networking Academy Program please visit: http://www.cisco.com/web/learning/netacad/index.html

About Cisco

Cisco (NASDAQ:CSCO, news, filings) is the worldwide leader in networking that transforms how people connect, communicate and collaborate. Information about Cisco can be found at http://www.cisco.com.  For ongoing news, please go to http://newsroom.cisco.com.

# # #

Cisco and the Cisco logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Cisco and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and other countries. A listing of Cisco’s trademarks can be found at www.cisco.com/go/trademarks. Third-party trademarks mentioned are the property of their respective owners. The use of the word partner does not imply a partnership relationship between Cisco and any other company.

PR Archives: Latest, By Company, By Date