The networking skills shortage could become critical in hindering technology adoption and economic growth unless action is taken now

Riyadh, July 3, 2006 -Unless the networking skills shortage is addressed urgently, in only three years demand for networking skills in Saudi Arabia will exceed supply by 33 per cent in 2009 and there will be a shortage of more than 33,900 skilled people required to help drive economic growth.  This finding which was released under the sponsorship of General Organization of Technical Education and Vocational Training (GOTEVOT) comes from a new report on the demand for Networking Skills in the Middle East, part of a series from IDC, commissioned by Cisco Systems.

In a press conference held for revealing the results of the study in Cisco Academy at GOTEVOT, H.E. Dr. Ali Bin Nasser Al Ghofais, Governor of GOTEVOT, said that this study clearly shows the gap between the demand and supply of networking skills in the Saudi market, thus leads us to develop a strategic plan for addressing this critical problem.

Saudi Arabia is actively attempting to address the shortages through various human resource development initiatives. These initiatives reflect the importance of ICT skills to society, and the need to ensure the availability of skilled staff. Saudi Arabia's General Organization for Technical Education & Vocational Training (GOTEVOT), created a separate government entity that focuses solely on improving national technical and vocational training. GOTEVOT has significantly increased the number of national Colleges of Education and private diploma programs, and has created specialist areas in the curriculum related to computer technology and other areas.

Dr. Badr Al Badr, General Manager, Cisco Systems, Saudi Arabia, said: "The networking skills shortage could become critical in hindering technology adoption and economic growth in these high growth markets unless action is taken now. By having the skilled people in place, businesses can take advantage of the productivity gains that can be generated with the rapid advances in technology - and that are being experienced in Europe. We need to continue to work with the Governments of these countries to raise awareness of employment opportunities across the regions, and encourage students to learn and develop both basic and advanced networking technology skills."

The situation is even more extreme when certain technology areas are singled out. For example, the shortfall between supply and demand in advanced networking technology skills (IP telephony, security and wireless)  will be 40 per cent in 2009. Again, this is in contrast to findings from Western and Eastern Europe that showed an average advanced networking skills gap of 15.8 per cent by 2008.

Saudi Arabia is experiencing impressive economic growth and has consistently maintained GDP growth levels. Over the past three years, the Middle East region has recorded some of the highest GDP growth rates in the world. 

IDC expects the ongoing economic expansion in the region to have a strong impact on ICT demand, including networking skills. As an example, IDC forecasts demand for IT in the Middle East to increase at a CAGR of more than 16.9% between 2005 and 2009.

This has led to the unprecedented demand for general and more advanced networking skills. Insufficient training programs also compound the situation and increased recruitment from local markets accentuates the need to address the issue through local training schemes. 

There is also scope for Internet growth in Saudi Arabia. Overwhelmingly 99% of respondents in the region indicated they mostly use the network for email and internet access. They all indicated that the important of the networking would increase in the future. The potential for network expansion is therefore very big, requiring significantly more skills to support such an expansion.

Investments in hardware equipment are expected to increase at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 19.6% until 2009, while investments in software products will rise by 11.2% and IT services by 10.8%. To put this in perspective, the Middle East region is expanding at more than twice the Western European CAGR of 5.8%. The economies of the Middle East are clearly expanding at a very fast rate, and as a result investment in IT is increasing across the board.

While there are a number of regional initiatives currently underway in KSA to promote further training in science and technology, the forecasted gaps highlight the need for more work to be done to provide the right training courses and to encourage student enrollment. The study findings represent a call to action to governments, the private sector, educators and individuals to do more to address these needs.  If plans are not put into place now, technology adoption, business competitiveness and market growth will be placed at risk.

Phillip van Heerden, Senior Analyst, IDC, said: "The business environment has evolved in recent years where supply chains compete against supply chains.  Organisations are now, more than ever, interconnected entities that depend on the network for integration with their business partners.  Not having sufficient networking skills available for this integration influences the competitiveness of not only organisations, but for the country as a whole."

Vendor-backed initiatives such as Cisco's Networking Academy Program are already making a difference. The Cisco Networking Academy Program addresses the need for training in networking technologies through structured courses. The program has impacted more that 11,000 academies and 1.9 million students around the world since it began in 1997. 

For more information follow: (http://www.cisco.com/go/netacad) 

Methodology

This white paper presents the results of the special IDC study commissioned by Cisco Systems on the demand and supply of networking skills across Saudi Arabia in the period 2005 to 2009. It covers general networking and advanced networking skills (IP telephony, wireless networking, and security). We have drawn on the results of a large-scale user survey conducted between November and December 2005 to make predictions about future issues around the use and development of skills and the role of the network in organisations.

The survey data has been used to populate IDC's skills model, which is also based on economic and statistical indicators, including GDP, unemployment rates, IT workforce estimates, education enrolment data, and population growth, from sources such as ILO, UNESCO, EAPEP, national statistical offices, as well as IDC's own technology and services market forecast data. Please refer to the individual IDC papers for a more detailed methodology description as well as an IDC skills glossary: http://www.cisco.com/edu/emea/general/idc.shtml.

Saudi Skilled People Gap Overview 

Country

 

2005

 

2009

Total networking skills

Skilled people gap estimate

Total networking skills

Skilled people gap estimate

  Saudi Arabia

17500

29.1

33900

33.4



-Ends- 

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For more information, please contact:
Mohammed Yousef
Riyad Bawani
Asdaa Public Relations
Riyadh, KSA
Phone:+ 9661 46400051
Fax: + 9661 4628229
E-mails: m.yousef@asdaa.com
r.bawani@asdaa.com

Abdul Aziz AL Zaid
Marketing & Communications Manager
Cisco Systmes
Riyadh, KSA
Phone:+ 9661 218 1088
Fax:+ 9661 218 1090
Mobile:+ 9661 50 546 3532
E-mail:abalzaid@cisco.com

© Press Release 2006