Bangalore, January 3, 2020: IBM will impart advanced skills to more than 2000 students, especially girls, in the areas of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) subjects to help them make career in the related areas.
The tech giant has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Government of Orissa in October last year to introduce ‘IBM STEM for Girls’ program across 100+ high secondary schools across districts.
The collaboration is part of a three-year programme between IBM and Indian state governments to increase the participation of girls and women in STEM careers.
According to the IBM officials, the demand for a highly qualified workforce in India is quickly increasing with the acceleration of emerging technologies like Cloud and AI. The ‘IBM STEM for Girls’ program features a comprehensive approach that builds technical capabilities as well as life and self-actualization skills.
‘STEM for Girls’ is an IBM Corporate Social Responsibility initiative primarily aimed at improving education-to-work and career pathways for girls who are studying in Government schools. The program includes imparting training in digital literacy, coding and technology skills; 21st century skills and career development, with an aim to enable girls’ empowerment and increase their interest in STEM education and careers.
"It is important for the entire ecosystem to come together to address the rising skill gap in the country and invest in the future of our workforce. Our collaboration with IBM will equip students with right skills for jobs of the future and represent a diverse workforce, "said Chitra Arumugam, Commissioner-cum-Secretary to Government, School & Mass Education Department, Bhubaneswar.
Rumi Mallick Mitra, Leader, Corporate Social Responsibility, IBM India said that upskilling in STEM has become very important for Indian students to compete in the global economy. "Our collaboration with Odisha government will help students to better align with market shifts and industry needs. IBM has been at the forefront and investing in the empowerment of the students to make them future ready and increase the talent pool," she said.
In March this year, IBM announced a significant engagement in India to advance the skills and careers of more than 200,000 (2 lakh) female students in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) fields. The collaborations began with signing of agreements with three state governments—Karnataka, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh—and are planned to widen to several other states. The program will enrol hundreds of more schools in the coming months.
IBM new collar skilling initiatives in India also include a two-year Advanced Diploma Programme in emerging technologies created in collaboration with the Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship. The course will be available to 100 Industrial Training Institutes (ITI), including 50 all-women ITIs, over the next three years.
IBM will also offer internships of up to five months to some students, presenting an opportunity for them to further deepen their skills and understanding in emerging fields such as Cloud and AI. Currently 40 ITI’s have been enlisted to initiate the 2 years diploma program in this academic year
Also, as part of IBM’s ongoing engagement with the Government of India targeting young innovators through the Atal Tinkering Labs initiative, some 4,000 mentors and 600,000 mentees will benefit from a unique AI-powered Mentor Platform. Developed with the IBM Watson cognitive engine, the platform monitors mentor and mentee interactions to provide personalized support to those using the platform. IBM has thus far on-boarded 2,500 mentors, including 300 IBMers, to this platform by collaborating with the national Mentor of Change mission.
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