PITA intervention in ICT sector
Palestinian ICT Sector is Coded for Success Palestinians are increasingly tech-savvy so the potential for IT based forms of economic engagement, which can cross virtual borders, can be an exciting leap forward Mariam Sherman, World Bank Country Director World Bank study, March 26, 2013 2
Palestinian ICT Sector is Coded for Success The Palestinian outsourcing industry is capable of sustaining multiple concurrent IT development projects at levels of quality, timeline and customer satisfaction as buyers would expect from a global IT outsourcing services provider The Guardian and the New York Times 3
Palestinian ICT Sector Profile Economic (2013) 637M$ Economic value added. Education ICT Workforce 90 %, 2500 yearly graduates. Employment 200 companies working in ICT subsectors. ~6% contribution to the national GDP. Revenue : 100M$ Services, Software 100M$ Hardware 10 % females working in ICT. 1900 direct employees, (2-3) in direct employment. 4
As of today, PITA has 170 members (45 Gaza, 125 WB) representing more than (60%) of the leading ICT private sector firms PITA has become the driving force in advancing the ICT sector s interests, and the leading information source about this sector in Palestine and its subsectors : Software, Hardware, Internet, Telecom, Training, Consultancy. 5
Mission To lead the ICT sector towards an innovation-based economy Vision A nation nurturing innovation and contributing to world knowledge PITA effectiveness, efficiency sustainability Enabling ICT business environment Sufficient qualified human capital Competitiveness of Palestinian ICT enterprises Positioning and promoting ICT sector PITA Institutional Development Policy and Advocacy ICT Human Talent ICT Enterprise Development Sector Branding
Main driver for partnership with UCAS Partnership Graduates Development of partnerships with UCAS and other Universities Prepare graduates whom are ready to work in the market Development Developing IT curricula that respond to the needs of the labour market Guidance Provide realistic recommendations during and after the project life cycle
What makes good relationship Give the partnership room and time to grow Government and donor support Enhance communication between UCAS & PITA and focus on sustainable development Areas for future UCAS-PITA partnerships and Potential mutual benefits of this linkage
Why to Continue? For more Cooperation For more coordination Better Graduates Curricula Development For more collaboration
PITA Role Can be summarized as: 1. One of the main members of Palapss steering committee. 2. Member of the evaluation committee for selecting PalApps consultants. 3. Participated in curriculum need assessment and market needs assessment study of the mobile app. 4. Participation in many workshops and project activities: Meeting for the best way for evaluation the student for On-job training. Meeting for evaluating the progress on overseas training. Meeting for evaluating the final draft of some curricula. 5. Participated in meetings and evaluating student for on-job training and also provide the suitable companies for on-job training. 6. Participated in execute the overseas training and recommend the best options of international training centers and the qualified trainers to get the maximum benefit from the training.
Success Stories Mohammed Abu Samak trained in Delta IT Company. The company was very impressed with Mohammed s qualification, so before the end of on-job training Delta Company hired Mohammed to work in permanent job as android mobile developer.
Human Capital PITA has created the Academia/Private IT Sector taskforce. The program will strengthen the relation and interaction between the education system s outputs and the private sector needs. PITA is in the process of launching an intensive capacity building program for fresh gradates. PITA is also launching a research and development program that will encourage the private sector and academia to produce commercial driven research.