EarthLink participated in the 4th Conference of Iraqi Universities on the Research and Development of Communications Engineering, Computer Engineering, and Information Technology Engineering.

Skyline Development Company Organized the R&D Communications conference in cooperation with the Ministry of Communications in Iraq.
Ahmed Shaker al-Saadi, a business consultant for Earthlink, said: “The R&D Communications conference discussed the importance of developing technology and the reasons for Iraq’s delay in keeping pace with it. Thus EarthLink’s task was to review the role of the IQB project – a project that was carried out one hundred percent by Iraqi experts. The project is now enabling Iraq to join the developed countries by adopting new technology.”

What’s our cause of interested in the Conference?

He then added: “EarthLink’s interest in supporting the young was because they constitute the largest section of society and are the most interested in modern technologies. And because we at EarthLink depend on youthful talent and creative ideas. We also believe that educational plans created in the 1960s and 1970s are no longer appropriate for the 21st century. Apart from attempting to understand this segment, we are also raising young people’s awareness of how to start a successful career. We’re doing this through our participation in the Iraqi Universities Conference, the HEP Project initiated by the IREX, and through other conferences and programs.

What’s HEP help to young people?

“Outside college, students receive comprehensive information about the most sought-after qualifications in the employment market to help them choose which area of study will be most advantageous for getting a decent job in the future.

The students in Iraq still need to be well-versed in this field, so that they can determine the right option to go for.”
Al-Saadi concluded that conferences like the Iraqi Universities Conference for Research and Development. He said: “These conferences help to provide young people with a proper understanding of labor market trends. And thus, it helps them to make wise choices that will benefit not only the youngsters themselves, but also the labor market, and society as a whole.”

How can the private sector support students?

Dr. Alaa Jassim, Executive Director of the National Internet Project, stressed that “all large projects and investments must aim to serve the community as a matter of social responsibility – especially concerning the student community, which represents the future and hope of Iraq. We are, therefore, supporting this segment by participating in the Iraqi Universities Conference and many other initiatives, including the I.T. Live Community.
Dr. Alaa Jassim said that there are more than a million unemployed people in Iraq right now. Because universities are offering the labor market up to 100,000 graduates of bachelor’s or diploma annually. And the Federal Court declared an order to freeze the government jobs. And until a new decision is made in relation to the Iraqi Budget, new job vacancies will not be announced. Which leads to the private sector as an only way to solve this issue. But unfortunately, it is shackled.

What’s the role of the private sector regarding the unemployment issue?

Executive Director of the National Internet Project added: “Many projects can be provided by the private sector.”

He added “those projects would significantly reduce the rate of unemployment. But the private sector is also facing problems that delay this support. It remains, however, the basic solution to the problem of unemployment in Iraq. And if we look at most other countries around the world. It is noticable that the Governments do not usually provide more than 5% of their nation’s jobs.

Do we need to attract big companies to Iraq in order to cover the unemployment issue?

“For example, in America, 94% of jobs are provided by small companies with no more than 150 employees. And well-known companies such as Google, iPhone, Apple, and others cover 6% of jobs in the labor market. Due to the importance of small businesses within the community. we have introduced an initiative to support such enterprises. We’ve designed to provide more indirect support to individuals. In addition, the Iraqi national Internet project will contribute to the provision of technological solutions to the problems facing the country’s telecommunications sector. We’ve made the solutions based on a new network linking all cities and villages. Which helps in the development of scientific, security, health, trade, and other sectors.”