Cisco ties up with USAID to train tutors in Mindanao

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY – Cisco Systems, a worldwide leader in Internet networking solutions, and USAID’s Computer Literary and Internet Connection (CLIC) Program have joined hands to provide students in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) and other conflict-affected areas in Mindanao with the essential information technology skills that will prepare them for the highly competitive global information society.

Through the Cisco-CLIC partnership, eight high school instructors from the ARMM and the other areas have successfully completed the Cisco Networking Academy Program’s IT Essentials course.

The teachers, whose schools are beneficiaries of the CLIC Program, will comprise the pool of instructors who are now certified to offer the course to fourth-year students in their respective high schools.

The CISCO-USAID/CLIC partnership introduces the Cisco Networking Academy Program to Mindanao for the first time.

It is a hands-on, lab-oriented program which provides skills training in assembling a computer, installing an operating system, adding peripherals, connecting computers to local area networks, and connecting computers to the Internet.

The course will help prepare students for the CompTIA’s A+ certification, an internationally recognized, entry-level employability credential.

"This project is an excellent example of like-minded partners from the donor community and the private sector coming together and sharing resources for the same goal – to help the ICT-challenged citizens of Mindanao in a tangible and sustainable manner," said Emmanuel Lallana, Commissioner for Human Capital Development of the Commission on Information and Communications Technology.