January 29, 2003

By Claudia Church, News@Cisco

Despite Afghanistan's current state of turmoil, some private companies and government agencies see a great potential to invest in the people and technological advancement of the country. Cisco Systems is one such company.

Cisco Systems has partnered with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) to open the first Cisco Networking Academy in Afghanistan. Based at the University of Kabul, the Academy aims to create a core of Afghan specialists who can help move the country into the digital age. The opening of the Academy serves as a model for public/private partnerships in the region and represents Cisco's first step toward accomplishing a two-tiered goal in the region: to help bridge the digital divide and gender divide.

"The Cisco Networking Academy Program enables the Internet to bring digital opportunities across the globe," said Tae Yoo, Vice President of Corporate Philanthropy at Cisco Systems.

Cisco's role within the UNDP partnership is to train the Afghan teachers and provide the web-based curriculum and networking equipment for the Academy. In turn, UNDP will support the training, provide computer hardware and facilitate the partnership with the University. With the support of $500,000 by the European Commission, UNDP will help set up five new training centers; three in Kabul, one in Mazar-e-Sharif and one in Kandahar. Each training center will be managed by Afghan nationals and will offer basic training for civil servants, the public and civil society organizations.

For more than two decades, Afghanistan has been largely cut off from the global community. Extremely limited access to the Internet and a severe shortage of skilled people trained in IT has hindered Afghanistan from entering the Internet age. In an effort to provide the people of Afghanistan with an entry into the global community, Cisco is focused on encouraging students' exposure, interest and skills in IT. The launch of the new Cisco Networking Academy in Kabul marks the first time that students in Afghanistan will have the same educational opportunities as other Networking Academy students around the globe.

"We want to stand at the same level as the rest of the world in terms of technology," said Zakia Moradi, a Cisco Networking Academy student in Kabul. "The network enables us to finally have a close relationship with the industrialized countries and become aware of the advantages of Information Technology."

In addition to fulfilling the hopes of Afghan students, the Academy program further fulfills the Least Developed Countries Initiative (LDCI). A partnership between the United States Agencies for International Development (USAID), UNDP and United Nationals Volunteers (UNV), the LDCI is dedicated to helping achieve the United Nations' goals of accelerating and improving IT skills, attaining sustainable development and fully integrating developing countries into the world economy.

At the same time, Cisco and UNDP are spending a lot of time trying to narrow the gender divide in education and IT in Afghanistan. In a country where women are heavily discriminated against when it comes to education, the Academy program will actively work to encourage women to enroll in IT courses and, upon completion of the program, secure jobs in technology. The shared hope of Cisco and UNDP is that, moving forward, the Cisco Networking Academy Program in Afghanistan will serve as a model for the education of women throughout many Least Developed Countries.

The Academy program is a comprehensive e-learning program that provides students around the world with the Internet technology skills they need to succeed and thrive in a global, digital economy. Through an e-learning environment, students have the opportunity to learn anytime, anywhere. The formal IT education of the Academy is founded upon a web-based curriculum that teaches students to design, build and maintain computer networks, as well as other IT skills and to prepare them for industry standard certifications. Web-based content, hands-on lab exercises, online assessments, student performance tracking and instructor training and support all contribute to the IT skill set that will eventually enable students to enter and compete in the global economy leading to an improved standard of living.

To date, the Cisco Networking Academy Program has met with tremendous success across the globe. Since the program's launch in 1997, Cisco has established more than 10,375 academies in 149 countries. Courses are offered in nine languages to over 385,000 students around the world and there are over 158,000 graduates to date.

For Cisco and its partners, this is still the beginning. Understanding the tireless dedication, innovation and time required to accomplish its goals, Cisco believes the establishment of Cisco Academies in every corner of the globe is just one more step toward bridging the digital and gender divide.

Claudia Church is a freelance writer living in the United Kingdom.