The UAE Air Force Air Defence (AFAD) recently held a graduation ceremony for the officers who successfully completed their International Computer Driving Licence (ICDL) training and examinations and received their official ICDL certificates. This follows the collaboration announced in July 2004, between AFAD and ICDL GCC Foundation to offer ICDL to all personnel.
The graduation ceremony was attended by Major General Khalid bin Abdullah Abu Al Ainnain, General Commander of UAE Air Force Air Defence, Jamil Ezzo, Director General, ICDL GCC Foundation and UAE Air Force officers, at the Officers Club in Abu Dhabi.
Addressing the graduating officers, Major General Abu Al Ainnain stressed the need for acquiring IT skills for all personnel of AFAD and spoke about the benefits of the ICDL programme, which helps simplify the complexities of IT.
"As computers help increase efficiency, accuracy and speed, they have become essential in every field of activity. However, in order to draw optimum benefits from computers, it is necessary to acquire the necessary skills to use computers and the common applications. ICDL is an internationally recognised standard, designed to give you the stepping stone into the world of knowledge and we are pleased with the number of officers that have acquired the ICDL certification to date. We are confident this will enable them to enhance their performance in their area of work," said Major General Abu Ainnain. He also announced the launch of an e-Learning portal that will provide officers and their families with access to a range of online courses. He concluded by congratulating all graduating officers and thanked ICDL GCC Foundation and the Information Technology Department (ITD) Air Force Air Defence for their support in furthering IT literacy within the Air Force institution.
"ICDL GCC Foundation is delighted to see the officers of the UAE Air Force Air Defence acquiring their computer skills based on the ICDL syllabus and international standards," said Jamil Ezzo, Director General, ICDL GCC Foundation. "We believe that the ICDL certification will give each officer, the required competence to explore a world of knowledge and to advance their skills in using it not only on the job, but also in their day-to-day personal life."
"As the country's premier defence unit, the UAE Air Force Air Defence has shown tremendous foresight by adopting ICDL for its personnel," added Ezzo. "This demonstrates AFAD's commitment to enhancing the IT skills of all its employees. This approach will enable the organisation to introduce new technology with a greater degree of success, as the officers would be competent in computer skills."
Following last year's agreement between AFAD and ICDL GCC Foundation, the ICDL program will be in the near future, required for new recruits and existing personnel of UAE Air Force. The programme is being administered jointly by ICDL GCC Foundation and UAE AFAD in a dedicated state-of-the-art training and testing centre based at the AFAD.
ICDL is the internationally recognised IT proficiency standard owned by the European Computer Driving Licence (ECDL) and recognized by international organizations, educational ministries, vocational training institutions and employers worldwide.
The ICDL UAE AFAD Training program covers the key concepts of computing, its practical applications and its use in workplace and society. The training exposes candidates to basic concepts of IT, computer hardware and software management and gives in-depth training in word processing, spreadsheets, databases and presentation packages.
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About International Computer Driving Licence (ICDL)
International Computer Driving License (ICDL), is an internationally recognized computer proficiency standard that is owned by the The European Computer Driving License Foundation (ECDL) and introduced by the UNESCO's Cairo Office (UCO) for Arab states in 2001, is gaining increasing acceptance in the Middle East, with several governments adopting and prescribing it to their employees. The ICDL program exists in over 136 countries, and is offered in 36 languages, including Arabic. The programs offered are all based on one standard syllabus and question set. There are more than 15,000 centers worldwide, above 4 million candidates, more than 1 million issued certificates and over 15 million exams have been taken globally since the launch of the program year 1997.
About ICDL GCC Foundation
ICDL GCC Foundation was created by the ECDL Foundation, the not-for-profit global governing body of the ECDL and ICDL member countries dedicated to helping raise the general level of computer skills in societies and providing access for all to the information society, to serve the to the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) States with their implementation of ICDL and for providing them with localized support to ensure quality of ICDL programs. The ICDL GCC Foundation is the sole accreditation body that is responsible to support ICDL accredited training and testing centers in the GCC. It also acts as the reviewing and approving body for the local adaptation of ICDL programs.
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© Press Release 2005
