Digital skills are recognized as one of the key building blocks for creating the digital economy, along with connectivity, security, trust and innovation. According to the OECD, digital skills, especially high-level skills, "enable innovation in a digital economy to flourish . . . [and] support the infrastructure that firms, governments, commerce and users rely on." That's why a growing number of countries and organizations have included digital skills training as part of their overall strategy to grow their national digital economies.​

Digital skills also lead to job creation and higher pay. Globally, some 10 million jobs requiring advanced digital/ICT skills, such as big data, coding, cybersecurity, Internet of Things and mobile app development, are going unfilled because employers cannot find staff with the requisite skills. Jobs requiring advanced digital skills also generally pay much more than jobs requiring no or only basic digital skills. Governments and a range of stakeholders can equip young people with highly demanded digital skills to ensure that they benefit from these employment opportunities and thereby create an inclusive digital economy and society. The good news is that many training programmes on digital skills already exist which can be leveraged by governments seeking to develop their own national plans. In addition, coding bootcamps, which rapidly train young people to code and support their job placement have emerged as one solution to fill the digital skills talent gap.  ​

The importance of promoting digital skills for youth employment has been recognized by ITU Member States, the European Commission in its Digital Skills and Jobs Coalition and the Global Initiative on Decent Jobs for Youth (Global Initiative), launched by ILO, ITU and twenty other United Nations agencies. To further the Global Initiative, ITU and ILO have launched the Digital Skills for Decent Jobs for Youth campaign to train 5 million youth worldwide with job-ready digital skills. This work contributes to achieving SDG 8 and supports employers across a range of industries to fill their growing talent gap.

This session will explore the latest trends in digital skills for youth employment in the digital economy. It will also highlight the role of ITU in promoting digital skills for youth employment globally and share the latest developments from ITU Members, the European Commission, the Global Initiative and the joint ILO – ITU Digital Skills for Decent Jobs Campaign.

Moderator: Ms. Susan Schorr, Head, Digital Inclusion Division, International Telecommunication Union

Welcoming Remarks: Mr. Yushi Torigoe, ITU BDT Deputy Director

Panelists:

• Mr. Daniel Spoiala, National Expert, European Commission ​​
• Eng. Daniel Obam, Communications Secretary , National Communications Secretariat, Ministry of Information, Communications and Technology, Kenya
• Dr. Shahjahan Mahmood, Chairman,Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC)
• Mr. Christoph Ernst, Senior Employment Specialist, ILO
• Ms. Fiorella Haim, General Manager, Center For Research - Ceibal Foundation​, Uruguay​

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