HP GET-IT partners with organisations in Europe, the Middle East,
Africa, and the Asia Pacific region to open GET-IT training centres
where trainings on IT for business are delivered to
micro-entrepreneurs. Learn about some of HP GET-IT’s many partner
organisations and the fantastic GET-IT projects they are running!
“The political agenda in Europe and Middle East is that entrepreneurship is seen as driver of economic development and growth.”
These words were spoken by Jeannette Weisschuh, Director Global Social Innovations Education Initiatives at the second HP GET-IT conference Non-HP site, which was held in Cairo last month. The conference brought together delegates from more than 80 Graduate Entrepreneurship Training through IT (GET-IT) training centres from appoximately 20 countries, to learn how HP’s GET-IT programme can help them to develop and strengthen their own communities and economy.
The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and the technology company HP announced today the opening of 20 additional training centres in Africa and the Middle East to expand HP’s youth entrepreneurship and IT education programme.
The new centres, part of the HP Graduate Entrepreneurship Training through IT programme (GET-IT), will operate in Algeria, Egypt, Kenya, Morocco, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and the United Arab Emirates. The total number of GET-IT centres will now reach 33 in ten countries in Africa and the Middle East.
Partners expand entrepreneurship education programme in Russia and Ukraine
Today, World ORT together with HP announced the expansion of the HP Graduate Entrepreneurship Training through IT programme (GET-IT) with the opening of ten new training centres in Russia and Ukraine.
The GET-IT programme is part of HP’s social investment strategy which aims at innovating teaching and learning to help future innovators and young entrepreneurs be successful in their future careers. HP supports various projects with young entrepreneurs, NGOs and educational institutions throughout Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) by providing technology and cash donations as well as courses and by involving HP employees as local mentors. In 2008, approximately one million people benefitted from HP’s social investment initiatives which have contributed to increase access to IT.
One of the aims of GET-IT is to address the high levels of unemployment among young people in underserved areas and emerging markets. Economic growth depends more than ever on the integration of young people in the labour market and successful entrepreneurship, especially in today’s economic climate. Since the launch of the HP GET-IT programme in May 2007, World ORT has partnered with HP to provide the GET-IT training to young people in Russia and the Ukraine. The expansion announced today brings the total number of centres to 32 in five CIS countries (including Russia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, Belarus and Kazakhstan).
HP has been finding out from three NGOs in Africa what progress they have made with GET-IT training within their organisations. The NGOs are quite different, but they are all focused on providing effective education for students and unemployed young people.
The first of our three interviews is with Mzwabantu Ntlangeni of Umsobomvu Youth Fund (UYF). UYF is a development financing institution that operates from 14 offices throughout South Africa. In the new financial year (from 1 April 2009), the Fund is planning to roll out additional branches which will take the number of operational branches to beyond 20. The headquarters are based in Johannesburg and HP provided UYF with a grant for GET-IT training facilities in Pretoria and Cape Town in 2008. UYF aims to implement at least 20 GET-IT courses throughout this year.
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