Microsoft, IICD launch TizaaWorks online platform
Microsoft Ghana, in partnership with the International Institute for Communication and Development (IICD), has launched the TizaaWorks online platform as a national one-stop online hub for employment and entrepreneurship.
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With the World Bank reporting that 65 per cent of Ghanaian youth are unemployed, the platform aims at equipping young graduates and school-leavers with the requisite skills to secure first-time job opportunities.
In addition, the online portal would serve as a career guidance and resource for those wanting to build their own businesses.
The TizaaWorks platform, a Microsoft YouthSpark and Microsoft 4Afrika Initiative, was launched by the Deputy Minister of Communication, Mr Ato Sarpong, at the Holiday Inn in Accra.
The Microsoft team, led by the General Counsel and Executive Vice-President, Legal and Corporate Affairs, Microsoft, Mr Brad Smith, met with Vice- President Paa Kwesi Amissah-Arthur and some selected ministers to discuss the partnership with the Government of Ghana to create jobs for the youth.
The platforms are being rolled out in collaboration with key partners across Middle East and Africa as part of Microsoft’s YouthSpark and 4Afrika Initiatives with a plan to have 25 platforms across the region by the end of financial year 2015.
Microsoft aims to reach a target of seven million youth across the Middle East and Africa, and create 96, 000 job opportunities and 200,000 new entrepreneurs by the end of 2015.
Impact of technology
Mr Smith said: “Technology can empower young people to make a vital contribution to their community and our world. We hope this platform serves as a bridge connecting Ghana’s young people to the tools, resources, and people they need to find the fulfilling careers they deserve."
Although there are many employment resources for the Ghanaian youth, Mr Smith said many did not know where to find them.
He said TizaaWorks aggregated the best, adding that access to rich e-content and exposing youth to the various learning and training organisations could help them realise their career aspirations.
Mr Smith said the TizaaWorks platform was critical to expanding IICD’s impact in supporting Ghanaian youth in smart learning, working and earning.
The Ghana Country Manager, Global Advisory Services Manager for IICD, Martine Koopman, said the programmes on the platform would build market-driven digital skills and help the youth find employment and start their own IT-related businesses.
