November 2020 – Tekwill

CALL PRIVATE SECTOR INITIATIVE FOR WOMEN ENGAGEMENT

REQUEST FOR APPLICATIONS: PRIVATE INITIATIVES FOR WOMEN ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT IN TECH

RFP Number:	UN Women-2020- 16/12
Issuance Date:	18.11.2020
Deadline for Offers:	27.11.2020
Description:	Support private initiatives to engage Women freelancers and entrepreneurs based on a public call, in partnership with the Tekwill project
For:	“EMPOWERING WOMEN IN TECH” financed by UN Women and Sweden, in partnership with TEKWILL Project, financed by USAID and Sweden
Issued By:	National Association of ICT Companies (ATIC)
Point of Contact:	ioriol@ict.md / techwomen@tekwill.md

1 About EMPOWERMENT OF WOMEN IN TECH

THE MOLDOVAN ASSOCIATION OF ICT COMPANIES (“ATIC”) is the business Organization uniting 64 companies. Umbrella Organization gathering over 5000 employees. Being established in 2006, ATIC is the action leading association and the voice of the Moldovan ICT industry that promotes the development of the ICT sector in the Republic of Moldova through viable partnerships between companies, similar organizations, government, state institutions and international organizations. The association was founded to represent the industry on different policy and legislative issues and to facilitate the exchange of best-practices between members. ATIC’s mission is to protect and promote the Association members’ interests as well as facilitate a more favorable ICT business climate.

Starting 2014 ATIC has actively involved in the promotion with women in tech, launching the annual “Women in ICT” event and supporting a series of initiatives like Technovation Challenge, Rails Girls, Girls Go IT. ATIC is committed to encourage young women and girls to consider and to pursue careers in IT, change the perception over the role of women in the ICT sector and strengthen the local community of female IT Professionals through experience and knowledge sharing, communication and interaction.

About Project “ Empowering Women in Tech”:

Empowering Women in Tech is a project implemented by ATIC with UN Women and Sweden Support since 2018.

As a key problem statement, ATIC will focus to empower more girls to:

Choose TECH and pursue STEM classes
Receive quality education to define their future career
Be part of a powerful Tech Women initiative together with other women who believe they can DO IT.

Through this project extension, we intend to keep the project objective to mainstream a gender perspective and promotion of gender equality and the empowerment of women through information and communication technologies. Also, ATIC seeks to build awareness that information and communication technologies (ICTs) are tools that enable gender equality and women’s empowerment and are integral of the building societies, in which both women and men can substantially contribute and participate.

About Tekwill Project:

The ICTEC Project started as a USAID program implemented by the National Association of ICT Companies (ATIC). In 2016, the Government of Sweden joined the program and expanded the operations and content programs of Tekwill. The project is implemented as a private-public partnership (though Global Development Alliances instrument (GDA)), between the Moldovan Government, private industry, academia and donors. The private partners include multinational companies, IBM and Microsoft, and also Moldovan Association of Private ICT Companies (ATIC) members that are local (operated) ICT companies. The private partners bring significant new resources, ideas, software, technologies and development activities, such as trainings, practical assignments, and mentorship. The private sector partners will have the chance to use the center to communicate with the university, SMEs, startups, professionals and contribute to the curricula improvement answering the market needs, as well as the improvement of the IT and entrepreneurship ecosystem that will lead to the economic growth of the country. The Government of Moldova supports this project at the highest level of the Prime Minister, and the partners include Ministry of ICT, Ministry of Education, and E-Government Center.

1.1 Private Initiatives for Women Economic Empowerment in Tech

The overarching goal of the Call is to support women driven private initiatives to further engage women freelancers and entrepreneurs based on a public call in Partnership with “Empowering Women in Tech” Project, supported by Sweden and UN Women. ATIC seeks support 2-4 initiatives that are focused on capacity building of women driven initiatives aiming to build awareness that information and communication technologies (ICT) are the tools that enable gender equality and women’s empowerment and are integral of building societies, in which both women and men can substantially contribute and participate.

As part of the extension phase during November-December, ATIC aims at supporting 2-4 initiatives promoting technologies, using technologies, being created, and implemented by women for empowering women.

Main objectives for the request:

Engage women, who are freelancers or entrepreneurs, for developing and implementing initiatives, products, services, or solutions aligned to the goal of the action, with measurable and positive impact on the women inclusion in IT sector. The activity is focused on new solutions underpinned by private initiatives to engage women freelancers and entrepreneurs.
Measure and make visible the impact of the new or existing initiatives, products, services and solutions, to support private sector engagement for sustainable development and attract more women in IT, support the women entrepreneurship, the women in IT sector growth, the promotion of tech jobs for women, other that may reach the provided goal.
Other options may be taken into consideration with a clear definition and presentation of further women focus driven engagement at the convergence of IT technologies

1.2 Types of innovation projects supported

The preferred projects applying to the call are innovative initiatives aligned to the objectives stated above. The initiative should meet the following criteria:

Experience sharing initiatives including IT or IT technologies as a solution
Innovative or existing on the market solutions with the possibility to be improved;
Sustainable within a period of time on the same market/country, or exportable;
Feasible (i.e. the solution does not require changes in the current legislation and could be anchored within the existing legal framework in certain period), there is evidence that prototype is technologically and economically feasible;
Collaborative, the activities should be tailored to other sectors (i.e. ICT and education, IT and non-IT sectors, support of entrepreneurship development, other);
With measurable impact on the Women in Tech Industry/Women entrepreneurship;
Women driven and aiming at empowering women through technology

Examples of possible eligible applications and constraints that women could eventually focus on:

talent management and retention of skilled labor force;
access to finance for prototyping of new products and services that require collaborative innovation;
export promotion through innovative approaches;
Other development, promotion actions related to the initiative.

The supported projects are in phase of innovation development and are based on a comprehensive business plan, addressing the identified specific challenges, and demonstrating high potential in terms of access to market and company/industry competitiveness and growth. The projects should already have previously developed innovative concept or prototype which demonstrates a clear technological and economic viability.

The innovative concept should represent considerable novelty to the national or global market (e.g. new products, processes, services or market application). In innovation development projects, the examples of financing activities may include prototyping, upscaling, design, performance verification, testing, demonstration, development of pilot lines, validation for market replication, IP protection and other activities aimed at bringing innovation idea (product, process, service, etc.) to investment readiness and market introduction.

1.3 Amount of awards

The awards’ fund will cover up to 240,000 MDL (co-funded by UN Women under “Empowering Women in Tech” Project and USAID and Sweden under the Tekwill Project) or maximum eighty percent (20 %) of the total project cost. Such contribution will be equally divided between the initiatives of the applicants or depending on the specific requirements of the collaborative project. The action may decide to finance higher amounts in case of insufficient applications and high impact of the initiative proposed.

Co-financing of at least twenty percent (20 %) of the total project budget is to be secured by the APPLICANT from their own investments or from other sources, in cash or in-kind with respective proof of resources spent or provided. Acceptable co-financing includes women/companies own investment, private investors, loan financing or other private sector cash contributions and public financing or co-financing. The total amount of Awards cannot be increased during the Project.

1.4 Duration of the project

The project and the project budget must be designed so to be completed within 6 (six) months. However, the project may be extended for a maximum of additional six (6) months, under exceptional circumstances, at the discretion of the Project team.

1.5 Eligible applicants

Eligible applicants to the request are:

women, citizens of Moldova, aged 18 or over
proposed initiative must have an innovative tech-related idea, early stage, the sustainability of the application must be demonstrated
established companies with min 51% women founders and women driven
The ability to provide the human resources (mentors, coaches, and program developers) with the programs to be implemented

The Applicants and individual owners have not been convicted for crimes connected to economic activities.

2 Application process

2.1 Description of the application process

The selection process is designed according to the principles of merit, transparency, equality, and rational use of funds. The innovation projects are selected against the clear eligibility and selection criteria, of which latter are assessed by the experienced and independent evaluators. The applications which fulfill all eligibility criteria, and which satisfy the selection criteria at most will be proposed for financing. They are in final phase assessed and ranked by the Independent Evaluation Committee and, subject to the availability of funds. The best ranked applications that can fulfill legal requirements are offered to sign Award Agreement.

2.2 Instructions to the application process

APPLICANT apply through the published open call: Concept Note, Project Action Plan, Budget.

While preparing the Application following rules apply:

There is only one Application per APPLICANT allowed;
Re-submission of modified and improved Applications is not allowed;
Deadlines for application is to be strictly respected;
In evaluation process, only complete Applications will be accepted.

2.3 Project Application Documentation

2.3.1 Concept Note

In the application stage, the APPLICANT should submit a filled out defined form of Concept Note (attached, Annex A), where the concept of the innovation project is shortly and concisely described, Project plan, Financial plan and the Curriculum Vitae, where the company/entrepreneur/freelancer and the development team shortly presented. The Full Application has to be submitted sent via email to achirita@ict.md and ioriol@ict.md until the stated deadline. There is no standard form for the budget or CVs; companies/entrepreneurs/freelancers present an overview of the planned funds.

The Project plan should contain the detailed elaboration of the concept, analysis of the market, impact analysis of the action versus the objectives of the call, sustainability of the action, if any, envisaged development activities including staff engagement, necessary material means and needed advisory services and trainings. The Projects should be tackling cross-cutting constraints for innovation, human capital development, entrepreneurship encouragement, community support and proposing specific collaborative technical and conceptual innovative solutions to such constraint that would ultimately work towards increasing the use of ICT, attracting more specialists to ICT, other.

Also, the Project budget must be submitted predicting all project expenses during implementation phase of 6 months, including both the award contribution, as well as the Applicant’s matching funds.

The Project Plan in Full Application should encompass the following:

Clear evidence of so far achieved initial results or insights to be considered as collaborative innovative foundation for the Project;
Justification of actions versus the objectives of the call;
Justification that there is an existing market for the proposed collaborative innovation and that the strategy for expanding the existing concepts is feasible;
Realistic plan of the Project activities so they can be implemented, considering technological, financial, time and market constraints, possibilities and opportunities;
Assurance that the project includes all activities necessary to achieve program objectives. Evidence that the team has relevant experience in the industry sector and necessary knowledge and skills to implement the planned activities for the development of the new product/process/service and successful preparation for commercialization;

Together with the Concept note, Project Plan, Financial plan, with detailed and reasonable project expenses estimates that are intended exclusively for project purposes, and CV’s of the members of the team should be submitted via online platform.

Applicants shall submit their application to participate and propose concepts until December 27, 2020 via e-mail ioriol@ict.md cc achirita@ict.md.

Applicants are responsible for ensuring that their expression of interests are received in accordance with the instructions stated herein. Late applications may be considered at the discretion of ATIC.

Questions regarding the technical or administrative requirements of this Call for Expression of interest may be submitted no later than December 22, 2020, 18:00 local Chisinau time by email to ioriol@ict.md. Questions must be submitted in writing; phone calls will not be accepted. Questions and requests for clarification—and the responses thereto—that ATIC believes may be of interest to other Applicants will be circulated to all pre-application recipients who have indicated an interest in the current call.

Only the written answers issued by ATIC will be considered official and carry weight in the Pre-application process and subsequent evaluation. Any verbal information received from employees of ATIC or any other entity should not be considered as an official response to any questions regarding this pre-application round.

2.3.2 Corporate and other documentation

In case of corporate application the documentation includes obligatory and non-obligatory items:

Business Registration Certificate issued by an Authority;
Certificate of tax debts issued by an Authority;
Proof of matching funds: company cash contribution (e.g. cash acquired through current business operations), investment contract (e.g. capital contributions), credit agreements with the banks or financial institutions, cash expected from the ongoing and future business operations and similar sources;
Bank statement from the dedicated bank account number;
All agreements with third parties directly related to the project (e.g. subcontracts, prior to signing of the Award Agreement, if applicable).

2.4 Eligible and non-eligible expenses

On a competitive basis, the award should be used by the Applicant for expanding its existing and developing new activities, elaboration of new solutions to serve the final goal of raising the development activities in the following group of expenses, regardless of the weight:

Gross salaries of development staff;
Equipment and supplies;
Technology, design, business, development and other consultancy services like quality certifications, copyright and patent application and fees;
Costs of tailored training of the staff;
Other costs, including logistics, catering, travelling connected to implementation of the innovation project (specifically for regional or, for example, community initiatives);
Any other costs meant to reach the impact of the actions/activities regarding third parties.

The expenses shown above should be predicted to reflect the Project goals and should be clearly justified, in accordance with Project objectives. Only expenditures accrued during the project, in accordance with the Project Budget and completed by the end of the project, are eligible for financing. All agreements with subcontractors or third parties must be submitted with the Application and must contain provision that the Applicant retains ownership of all new intellectual property and know-how that may be created during the implementation of the project.

Expenses that will not be considered for financing by the Private Sector Engagement call include but are not limited to:

– Interest or debt owed to any third party;

– Expenditures and provisions for possible future losses or debts;

– Items already financed through another similar scheme, program or institution, Financial awards;

– Bank and currency exchange expenses, losses, fees and penalties;

– Purchase or rent of land or buildings, including any renovation;

– Cash payments from the project account;

– Investment into own employees (e.g. internal training, etc.)

Download Concept template

UN NOU WEBINAR ORGANIZAT DE TEKWILL ACADEMY DESPRE IMPORTANȚA SECURITĂȚII CIBERNETICE

Tekwill Academy împreună cu Allied Testing organizează webinarul Security Testing cu scopul de a crește interesul în rândul studenților și angajaților din domeniul IT asupra securității.

Pe măsura extinderii rapide ale internetului asupra vieților noastre (de la internet banking până la datele adunate despre indicatorii de sănătate ale unui smartwatch), societatea a început să vorbească mai des despre protecția datelor și securitatea cibernetică.

În perioada actuală, companiile dețin și colectează date mai mult ca niciodată, iar webinarul vine să ofere o imagine de ansamblu asupra acțiunilor ce trebuie întreprinse de a asigura securitatea informațională, astfel, urmărim sporirea calității și nivelului de protecție ale companiilor locale de IT.

În cadrul webinarului se va discuta despre:

– atacurile cibernetice;

– vulnerabilități;

– intruziunea în rețea;

– încălcarea securității datelor.

Speaker: Sergey Petreychuk, Information Security Officer.

Detalii Webinar

10 decembrie, ora 18:00
Participare Gratuită
Limba de desfășurare: Rusă
Format: Video Conference

Înregistrează-te pentru a afla mai multe despre securitatea informațională:
https://tekwill.typeform.com/to/h8XBoJ1M

STARTUP ACADEMY BOOTCAMP 2020 CONNECTS LOCAL STARTUPS TO OPPORTUNITIES

To support the development of entrepreneurship in Moldova, the Tekwill project organizes multiple events and projects dedicated to training Moldovan entrepreneurs. Moldovan startups that are developing innovative products and services are able to benefit from several opportunities.

One opportunity in particular is Startup Academy Bootcamp, an accelerator program which recently set 11 experts in the field to meet with local entrepreneurs in Chisinau. Eight startups entered the online bootcamp which served as an excellent scaling tool, given that startups have been offered absolutely free access to an entire ecosystem of business founders, investors, and consultants. The bootcamp has been organized by the Startup Moldova Program, implemented within the TEKWILL project with the support of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and Sweden.

Ana Chirița, director of the TEKWILL project: “The idea we started from was to offer entrepreneurs a useful experience and to contribute to the creation of networks of knowledge and inspiration for entrepreneurs. This program provided participants with a complex set of workshops from which they learned about the principles of starting a business, identifying, and exploring the benefits of target markets, gaining access to finance, etc. The bootcamp is an excellent opportunity to gain hands-on knowledge from professionals in the field and to establish connections with Startup Academy organizers, partners, and mentors, who have guided participants to grow their business quickly. Thus, we contribute to the acceleration of local entrepreneurship, and startups that have the courage to adopt innovations and use their ideas intelligently, and later will be able to build businesses with local, regional or international impact.”

Startup Academy Bootcamp – a platform for connecting startups with investors and experts in the field

The participants in the 2020 edition of Startup Academy Bootcamp had the opportunity to improve their skills and entrepreneurial knowledge with 11 qualified mentors: four local mentors and seven international mentors from Romania, the Russian Federation, the Czech Republic, Georgia and Hungary. Among them is Răzvan Atim, the representative of UiPath – the startup that became a “unicorn” whose value was estimated at 10.2 million dollars in 2020. Over the course of three days, the young entrepreneurs presented their businesses and received personalized feedback, resulting in improvements to their development objectives for their startups.

Alina Rozanova, Executive Director, TouchPlatform, Georgia: “Several aspects are extremely important in presenting a business so that we can persuade investors: focus on the chosen field, be stable and with rapid growth potential, profit – we must be able to demonstrate that the money invested will bring profit, we also mention about the market analysis, exact figures, because the statistics show that investors are more willing to allocate finance to companies that already have a prototype product/service. The team also plays an important role, investors pay attention to the team and the founders of the business, they aim to be involved, sincere and ambitious. And the icing on the cake – the pitch. A crucial aspect is the impeccable presentation of the business plan, and exact arguments on the financial needs and use of funds.”

For those looking to expand into new markets, Europe is undoubtedly a platform full of opportunities, experts suggest. Last year, around 2,300 startups were set up in the EU, most of them in fields such as Tech, Greentech or Fintech. In a study conducted in 2019, 64% of European startup founders said they prefer Europe to launch their business, to the detriment of other continents. The most powerful startup ecosystems can be found in the UK, Germany, or France. The founders of startups consider that talent and value for money are the main strengths of Europe.

Tamás Békási, Project Manager, eitHealth: “Expanding your business in the EU is an important and courageous decision. But you need to look at a few things, such as energy resources or fintech that are different in each country, before choosing your target audience. You also need to be aware of the GDPR restrictions for that country. In recent years, social entrepreneurship – projects focused on climate, health, agriculture has been encouraged and you will find many public resources that will fund your idea.”

Other interactive sessions included workshops on topics such as customer retention strategies, the art of presenting, market/investor research methods, fundraising strategies, and economic units (costs, revenues, profit). At the pitching workshops, both the entrepreneurs and the mentors browsed the creative ideas and reformed what a startup needs to build and offer a captivating pitch. At the end participants presented their ideas in front of a panel of experts.

Dumitru Albot, co-founder of SMARTEST: “There is no success that appears overnight. It all depends on your perseverance and dedicated time, years of trials and tribulations, which, in the end, will give important results. Startup Bootcamp is the system that can significantly reduce the learning trajectory, but also accelerate scalable results, and this helps you to have more clarity in the journey through the sphere of entrepreneurship.”

Discover the startups!

Startups participating in bootcamps are among the most active and innovative startups in the local entrepreneurial ecosystem.

Teleportravel – an online travel platform where any traveler can promote routes so that other tourists can find new and unexplored places in Moldova. The project provides the opportunity to every tourist to share their own tourist experiences with other enthusiastic travelers via the Teleportravel platform which contains an online guide and Messenger.
Agricos – an online marketplace for local producers and small/medium farmers where they can sell their products directly to consumers. Farmers also have the opportunity to sell directly to B2B consumers and earn at least 15% more, receiving orders without leaving the farmland.
WOOP – a transparent and reusable protective mask which aims to solve the communication and pollution problems that occur after using current surgical masks meant to prevent the spread of the Covid-19 virus. More than $150,000 is needed for the mass production of the WOOP mask which is why the team of inventors has launched a fundraising campaign to launch the innovative product.
EAGRIASSIST – a web trading platform that unites local agri-food farmers and commercial actors for the development of trade in agricultural products.
SMARTEST – an educational platform with the help of which high school students assess their knowledge gaps to better prepare for exams. SMARTEST combines psycho-pedagogical best practices with IT solutions for maximum efficiency in training students and provides psychological preparation before passing the exams.
Appzi- an easy-to-use feedback tool that helps entrepreneurs find suggestions and feedback about their products. The given feedback can be useful to the entire design or development team using the Appzi feedback management portal.
iBeauty – an application through which reservations can be made for beauty salons/shops. ibeauty evolves the practices of the beauty industry and reinvents the way Moldovan consumers see the beauty industry.
Kickly – an online application that facilitates sports associations to create high-quality graphics at lower costs by using predefined templates that will facilitate the creation of graphic images.
ro – online educational platform for individual guidance, which uses web conferencing tools designed for students and teachers. Built on the model of crowdsourcing, the platform aims to combine educational content and correlate the material of different school subjects with current curricula.
Life – It is a digital platform for virtual wine tastings. Being located anywhere in the world, Gustos.Life users can invest, resell and finally, offer a gift of any brand of wine produced globally with a simple click.

About the TEKWILL project

Startup Academy Bootcamp, part of the “Startup Moldova” Program, took place between September 30 and October 2, 2020. It is implemented by ATIC within the TEKWILL Project with the financial support of the United States Agency for International Development and Sweden. “Tekwill” was created in 2017 as the Center of Excellence of the ICT sector in Moldova, with the main purpose of aligning the field with current market requirements. Aiming to contribute to increasing the competitiveness of the IT industry and other strategic sectors of the economy, the center has expanded its fields of activity, becoming in 2019 a complex nationwide project, with the slogan “The revolution begins!” The basic objective of the TEKWILL Project, as a platform dedicated to the progress of the IT sector, is to ensure a major impact on the economic development of the country, by improving the entrepreneurial and educational capacities of society, but also by increasing the research and development potential of education institutions, in line with the demand in the IT market.

MOLDOVA ICT INDUSTRY RECORDS SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS IN RECENT YEARS

In recent years, the ICT sector in Moldova has made remarkable progress. Smart technologies have increasingly entered the business environment and everyday life and private companies have been on the rise. The results have exceeded the forecasted 2018-2023 strategy for the development of the information technology industry and ecosystem for digital innovation. In one single year, the sector’s turnover increased to $380 million, which represents 70% of the 5-year estimate. There were considerable changes in terms of attracting human capital with the total number of IT professionals increasing by about 38%. This number is 13% higher than the total forecasted for the next 5 years.

The upward trend is also confirmed by the indicators/statistics of the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), which shows that from 2015-2019 the IT industry tripled its sales revenue and along with the telecommunications sector accounted for 7.1% of the GDP. The success of the IT sector can be quantified in the number of jobs created, accounting for over 29,000 people who work in the field with the highest salaries on the market.

Representative figures for the ICT sector, 2019:

Annual sales revenues – 6.8 billion MDL ($ 395.135 M)

Contribution to national GDP – 7.1%

The volume of ICT exports – over 5 billion MDL ($290.540 M)

The volume of investments in computer services – MDL 2.6 billion ($151.081 M)

Employees in the ICT sector – 29,600 people

ICT companies on the market – 2300

IT products and services – exported to over 30 countries

NBS data shows that in the period referenced, the IT industry recorded revenue of about 6.8 billion lei ($395.135 M), while the volume of exports of products and services exceeded the figure of 5 billion lei ($290.540 M). There are 2,300 companies on the Moldovan market that export their IT products and services to over 30 countries around the world. Moldova is considered an attractive destination from a technological point of view, both for small companies and for those with major investment potential. Thus, in 2019 the number of ICT companies in Moldova increased by about 35%. The domestic IT market also offers favorable conditions for attracting foreign investors and is taking important steps to join the first-tier states of regional attractiveness. Among the competitive advantages of Moldova are the elimination of administrative barriers for foreign IT professionals, tax facilities for employees in the sector, a single tax of 7% of sales volume, and the creation and launch of physical infrastructure of IT parks. Over 600 companies from 136 countries operate in the IT Park, with 45% of these businesses registering within the past year. Private companies employ over 10,000 people with an average salary of about 29,000 lei per month under the conditions of the IT Park tax regime. The total turnover of resident companies according to IT Park statistics is 3.7 billion MDL ($215 M). The country’s capital remains the favorite destination of companies in the field. This year, Chisinau was named the city of the year in Southeast Europe for supporting and developing the IT sector. The capital won the “Emerging City of the year in SEE” award, ahead of cities such as Tbilisi and Sofia in one of the most important events in the field, “CEE Business Services Summit and Awards 2020”, held in Warsaw, Poland.

International support for the development of the ICT sector

The increase of competitiveness and the progressive development of the sector in recent years has also taken place with the constant support of external financiers. Due to the development potential of the sector, the development partners provided constant technical and financial assistance by supporting the private sector and entrepreneurship by creating IT parks and attracting investors. Among the top supporters of IT development in Moldova is the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the first donor to recognize the potential of the Moldovan IT industry and provide assistance since 2005. Since then, Moldova’s exports of IT services and products have increased 40 times. Sweden is also in the top 5 external donors for the Republic of Moldova with the IT sector being one of the areas it supports. In recent years USAID and Sweden have invested about $ 8.9 million in the Tekwill Project, implemented by the National Association of ICT Companies (ATIC). Tekwill and ATIC have also attracted private and public investments of over $4 million to contribute to the development of the IT sector in Moldova. About 66,000 people have benefited from the educational and entrepreneurship programs of the TEKWILL Project, and 218,500 people became beneficiaries of the projects carried out in partnership with other entities. “Tekwill” was created in 2017 as a Center of Excellence of the ICT sector in Moldova, with the main purpose of aligning the field with current market requirements. Aiming to contribute to increasing the competitiveness of the IT industry and other strategic sectors of the economy, the center has expanded its fields of activity becoming a complex nationwide project, with the slogan “The revolution begins!” in 2019. The basic objective of the Tekwill Project, as a platform dedicated to the progress of the IT sector, is to ensure a major impact on the economic development of the country by improving the entrepreneurial and educational capacities of society, in addition to increasing the research and development potential of educational institutions in line with the demand in the IT market.

MOLDOVA STARTUP WEEK RETURNS WITH A NEW ONLINE EDITION DEDICATED TO LOCAL STARTUPS

Moldova Startup Week 2020 is the most important event dedicated to local startups that provides many opportunities and benefits. Taking place between November 16-20, it will include a series of interesting events and options for current and potential entrepreneurs with innovative ideas.

For five days, participants will have access to a variety of workshops, information on potential sources of funding and acceleration programs, launch entrepreneurial initiatives, exchange experience with other startups in various fields, and meetings with potential investors. International guests with extensive experience from failure to success in developing startups will be in the spotlight to share their success stories with participants.

Also, during Moldova Startup Week 2020 the country policies and actions to be taken for the development of the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Moldova will be presented. The event will facilitate the constructive dialogue for the development of the economy based on technology and innovation, the application of international trends, creating several opportunities for local startups.

Participate as well! Register at: https://startupmoldova.digital/startup-week/

To be up to date with all the details of the event visit: https://www.crowdcast.io/e/chisinaustartupweek

Get to know the Moldova Startup Week 2020 edition!

“Gov4Startups” – November 16

The official opening of Moldova Startup Week 2020 will kick off with a session focused on government where several topics will be discussed about the legal framework, international ecosystem development models, dedicated programs and funding platforms, as well as other actions to stimulate local entrepreneurship related to technologies and innovations. Together with the public authorities this panel will be attended by local and international experts as well as development partners. The first day’s program will be complemented by two more panel discussions on how the private and public sectors collaborate with universities in the country to encourage the development of innovation. In parallel, the XY organization will conduct a workshop with local startups where they will discuss the steps to follow in preparing for pitches to catch the attention of potential investors. By the end of the day participants will learn about programs and opportunities from which local startups may benefit.

“Startup Showcase” – November 17

Local startups will be presented to the general public giving students, freelancers, employees, and digital enthusiasts an opportunity to become familiar with the most popular startups in the country. Many business founders who have an open mind and the courage to overcome barriers will present their success stories. Participants will have the opportunity to listen to motivational speeches but also learn practical advice on how to go from an idea to a business. Also, on this day, the results of the online voting of the best local startup chosen by the general public through an application will be presented.

“Matching Day” – November 18

This day will include a day full of online sessions that will connect startups with mentors, accelerators, and investors to work together to improve future initiatives. Participants will have the opportunity to present their products to potential customers, to collect feedback and suggestions, to establish connections with other members of the local community of startups. They will also participate in practical workshops, where they will learn how to “sell” their business or ideas to investors. The workshops will take place offline and will be held behind closed doors.

“Vertical Day” – November 19

This day will include several events dedicated to innovations in various fields such as Winetech, AgTech, MedTech, EdTch, and Fintech. These are the areas that will be discussed in online interest groups and where participants will learn more relevant innovative practices and digital solutions from local and international experts.

“Corporate Innovations Day” – November 20

The last day of the event will be dedicated to corporate innovations. Professionals from the management of some referenced companies in the tech field will share details behind the roles and importance of innovations in their business and how they are created and implemented in their daily work.

Moldova Startup Week is a Techstars event, which takes place in over 50 countries around the world. It is carried out within the entrepreneurial communities to bring together relevant people in building the entrepreneurial ecosystem, from representatives of the public administration, future entrepreneurs, investors, and support organizations. “Techstars Startup Week” is organized by Startup Moldova with the support of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and Sweden in the Tekwill Project.

TEKWILL FOLLOWS THE LATEST TRENDS IN EDUCATION AND LAUNCHES THE ONLY ONLINE COURSE PLATFORM IN MOLDOVA

Major investments in training and development of the workforce are essential for increasing economic competitiveness, productivity, and the ability to make progress, especially in the Moldovan IT industry. This principle was applied by the Tekwill project, an important pillar in the preparation of the workforce to adapt to the current needs of the market for the IT industry or for other related fields in which specialized knowledge is in high demand. In this case, the Tekwill project developed several educational initiatives for students, teachers, IT professionals or young people who want to change their field of study in accordance with market requirements.

To facilitate beneficiaries’ access to its educational programs, Tekwill has launched an integrated online course platform, tekwill.online. This digital platform has a variety of exclusive content and is accessible to all those looking to learn new skills in the IT field. The educational materials have animated elements as well as video or text components which can be accessed free of charge by users. The courses of the “Tekwill in every school” program, also available free of charge to users, has announced the launch of the platform. Subsequently, it is to be completed with two other online programs under the Tekwill brand.

Tekwill.online – educational programs available for any age

The “Tekwill in every school” (TiES) program includes courses dedicated to students ages 13 to 19 and allows free access to innovative digital resources, providing knowledge and skills for careers of the future. It includes four modules of study:

artificial intelligence,
software development,
creative industry,
entrepreneurial leadership.

Currently on the platform there are three courses available: graphic design, programming algorithms in C / C ++, and Web Design and Development. The platform will soon add other courses of the modules. Each lesson contains a collection of interactive and compiling exercises (code interpreter) and at the end of the lessons, students can test their knowledge in a flash quiz.

Each course can be studied individually or guided by a teacher during optional classes. Through these courses students have the opportunity to develop their creativity, critical thinking, improve their communication skills, and acquire new digital skills. As information resources, mentors have at their disposal digital texts, explanatory videos, simulation exercises, interactive assessment tests.

Currently, 195 teachers and 5,327 students are already registered on the TiES platform, who will have more interactive teaching materials available. Both students and teachers are grouped into classes and each teacher can follow the success of their student in that class. Access to this information will help the teacher to check the progress of each student, to follow what difficulties the student encounters ,and to identify ways to help them with the possibility to personalize their practical homework. The platform also helps teachers to supervise the activity and growth of each student.

Through this online platform teachers will have the opportunity to apply new teaching methodologies such as the flipped classroom which requires students to study homework independently and come to class to discuss and put into practice the topics studied with the teacher. These skills were acquired by teachers in a training program where teachers participated in this past summer. Soon, on the platform, the course calendar will become functional, notifications and webinars will be digitized, and gamification elements will be added. Digital badges will also be created for each student’s progress to show the skills acquired.

“Tekwill Academy” and “Tekwill Academy Kids” are two other TEKWILL educational programs with online versions available to the general public soon.

“Tekwill Academy” provides programs aimed to increase the level of trained professionals in specialized fields. Eight courses have been adapted to the current needs of the labor market and will be made available to users:

Java programming,
C # programming,
Programming in Python,
Networking,
Web Development,
Manual and automatic software testing,
Algorithms and data structures.

This program collaborates with major international providers by offering courses with world-renowned international certifications such as Oracle SQL Fundamentals, Oracle Java Fundamentals, and PMI-ACP Certification Training. In 2018 Tekwill Academy obtained SEETB accreditation for conducting certification exams in the field of Software Testing – ISTQB, and over 50 specialists have already certified their skills in this field.

“Tekwill Academy Kids” (TAK) will include training courses for children and adolescents aged 3 to 17. This program allows participants to explore their future from an early age. The aim of the initiative is to encourage beneficiaries to develop their digital skills, increase their knowledge, and discover their creative potential. In the first stage, TAK will provide six online training courses:

Arduino
Graphic design,
Interactive programming,
Mathematics,
Videography,
Web design,
Mobile applications.

After each course, children will be able to apply their knowledge gained by participating or developing real projects.

The tekwill.online platform was created within the Tekwill Project with the support of USAID, Sweden and UNDP development partners. The content of the site was developed by the project implementation partners together with a team of education experts. The project is carried out with the support of the Ministry of Education, Culture and Research.

About TEKWILL

The TEKWILL project is implemented by the National Association of ICT Companies with the financial support of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and Sweden. “Tekwill” was created in 2017 as a Center of Excellence of the ICT sector in Moldova, with the main goal of aligning the field with the requirements of the 21st century. Aiming to contribute to increasing the competitiveness of the IT industry and other strategic sectors of the economy, the center has expanded its fields of activity, becoming in 2019 a complex nationwide project. The basic objective of the TEKWILL Project, as a platform dedicated to the progress of the IT sector, is to ensure a major impact on the country’s economic development by improving the entrepreneurial and educational capacities of society, but also by increasing the research and development potential of IT educational institutions, in line with the demand in the IT market.

670 EMPLOYEES TRAINED IN ONLINE BUSINESS PROMOTION WITH STARTUP ACADEMY

More than 670 employees of Moldovan small and medium businesses (SMEs) have successfully graduated from the “Startup Academy” program, a complex intensive training for entrepreneurs.

The current edition, dedicated to SMEs, delivered a series of courses in practical fields, providing participants with the necessary knowledge to make their business visible in the digital environment, helping them to continue their activity during a pandemic. For three months, they studied topics such as digital solutions, marketing tools, and online sales & promotion. The approximate 455 participating SMEs benefited from direct expertise from mentors with experience in marketing, communication, IT, logistics, and human resources for the problems they face in the process of migrating their online business. The aim of the initiative was to train entrepreneurs so that at the end of the course they understand the mechanisms underlying the growth of a successful business. “Startup Academy” is organized within the Startup Moldova program “Digital Upgrade” and is a partnership between the TEKWILL Project and ODIMM.

Ana Chirița, TEKWILL project director: “Considering our niche of projects, mostly IT, this is a new opportunity to support SMEs in Moldova. We believe that information technologies are the basis for modernizing and facilitating trade, including online. The aspects in which the economic agents needed an impetus or a package of knowledge to develop their business were offered through this methodically structured program to meet the expectations of entrepreneurs. The need for the program was pointed out to us by SME representatives in a study, in which about 90% of participants mentioned that they need expertise and knowledge to become competitive as they do not have the ability to build sustainable online businesses. I am impressed by the successes of the participants, by the large presence of those enrolled, and this makes me believe that Startup Academy is a really useful program.”

Iulia Costin, General Manager, ODIMM: “We enjoy the partnership with TEKWILL and the Startup Moldova program and thank Sweden and USAID for their collaboration, as their involvement strengthens economic prosperity in the Republic of Moldova. Through this project, we aim to help companies in rural areas. This digitization tool serves like a test to see how well companies are prepared for a future national digital training program. Training means knowledge, knowledge means a step forward – this is what Startup Academy means. The SME digitization tool is an efficient and fast solution and positive results are already crystallizing. We are working on processing the first wave of projects – 190 companies have submitted files to receive small grants and 230 – seek for large grants. On this occasion, I come with an urge to entrepreneurs to talk openly about their ideas, needs or what type of funding require. You will have the opportunity to make your voice heard at the next application session that will be launched soon by ODIMM.”

Vitalie Tarlev, Secretary of State, MEI: “We, as the Ministry of Economy and Infrastructure, have the task of eliminating the constraints that may arise in the process of interaction between economic agents and authorities in the online environment. We have a number of institutions that have adapted to the online environment and several institutions that are in the process of digitization. I am pleasantly surprised to learn that this program has enjoyed a wide audience and will be further developed. In a short time, we managed to form teams, we managed to set budgets to answer the pressing questions of the business community, especially SMEs. We are also happy to see public institutions that, thanks to these initiatives, have become more efficient and provide digital solutions. I want to thank the developers and partners for this program and wish everyone success in business, since it has been enriched with useful knowledge.”

The course program was structured on two levels: intermediate and advanced. In the first stage, entrepreneurs learned the importance of having a physical presence on online platforms and how to adapt a business to be as close as possible to customers.

Digitization of the private sector supported by USAID and Sweden

The special edition of the Startup Academy dedicated to entrepreneurs is organized within the Digital Upgrade initiative of the Startup Moldova program, developed within the framework of the Tekwill project with the support of USAID and Sweden development partners, together with ATIC, ODIMM, Moldova IT Park and UNDP. To date, about 472 teams and 680 companies have received support to grow and improve their business through the program.

Adam Amberg, Head of the Development Cooperation Section, Swedish Embassy in Moldova: “I am glad to be here and thank all those who contributed to this program. I have a few years of experience in this field, but Moldova continues to amaze me with its development potential in this sector. We, in Sweden, believe that digitalization and innovation lead to prosperity, transparency and well-being. We noticed among the participants the need for advanced knowledge and digital training to develop sustainable online businesses. The number of companies that have participated in this program is impressive and I hope that they have acquired knowledge and confidence to launch e-commerce after completion.”

John Riordan, Deputy Head of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID): “The Moldova Startup Program aims to provide the infrastructure to promote the digitalization of the non-IT sectors and support e-commerce. This is especially important now because about 88% of SMEs in the Republic of Moldova have been affected by declining product demand. I believe that digital innovations are the solutions for Moldovan SMEs to ensure their activity and provide jobs. Another advantage of participating in this program is the creation of valuable links with experts and investors in the field. USAID will continue to support the IT industry and entrepreneurial competitiveness, and we will soon support the development of other regions in Moldova than Chisinau. Thus, we will contribute to this digital revolution, facilitating access to the best knowledge and practices.”

The Tekwill Project – The Revolution Begins!

The National Startup Moldova Program is part of the Tekwill Project, implemented by the National Association of ICT Companies, with the financial support of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and Sweden. Tekwill was created in 2017 as a Center of Excellence of the ICT sector in Moldova, with the main purpose of aligning the field with current market requirements. Aiming to contribute to increasing the competitiveness of the IT industry and other strategic sectors of the economy, the center has expanded its fields of activity, becoming in 2019 a complex nationawide project, with the slogan “The revolution begins!”. The basic objective of the TEKWILL Project, as a platform dedicated to the progress of the IT sector, is to ensure a major impact on the economic development of the country by improving the entrepreneurial and educational capacities of society, but also by increasing the research and development potential of education, in line with the demand in the IT market.

AGTECH ACADEMY FOCUSES ON TRAINING SESSIONS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE IN AGRICULTURE

IT solutions remain one of the most suitable ways to recover traditional sectors of the country’s economy. Recently, the program “AgTech Academy” was launched, an initiative that will develop the skills of young people in agriculture that are required by companies in the country. The training courses represent an activity similar to the National Startup Moldova Program “Digital IMPACT”, a project that aims to provide several digital solutions for the recovery of traditional sectors of the national economy. This includes solutions such as process automation, improving business tools, and facilitating the use of e-commerce by encouraging cross-sectoral collaboration.

Ana Chirița, TEKWILL Project Director: “The Tekwill project is committed to providing digital solutions for several strategic sectors of the national economy. Through the national program Startup Moldova “Digital IMPACT”, we collected data on industry difficulties and potential IT solutions on the market, and then we encouraged cross-sectoral collaboration. Moreover, we have launched several entrepreneurship education programs combined with the elements offered by IT solutions, and now we are at the stage of identifying and approving 10 solutions for different fields, which can be folded into several sectors and will contribute to their development. And that’s because at Startup Moldova we grow ideas that change the world. “

“AgTech Academy” – necessary training for young people in agriculture

The initiative to train young people in agriculture is launched by the specialized portal Agrobiznes.md, with the support of the USAID/ Moldova High Value Agriculture Activity and the TEKWILL Project “Startup Moldova Digital IMPACT” for digitalization of agriculture, funded by USAID and Sweden.

Oleg Stiopca, Head of Labor Development, USAID/ Moldova High Value Agriculture Activity: According to studies conducted at the beginning of the USAID/ HVAA project, young people studying agricultural specialties lack so-called “soft skills”, i.e. skills related to communication, leadership, teamwork. Certainly, AgTech Academy will fill these gaps in training strength specialists who will turn agriculture into a successful business.”

In partnership with Startup Academy, several training courses are to be organized in the next period, given that the progress of agriculture in the country requires additional expertise. Forty young people are to be selected to participate in two editions of the Academy including autumn/winter 2020 and spring/summer 2021. With these editions, a series of trainings will be organized where participants will develop their corporate thinking, learn the secrets of strategic planning, and digitization of agriculture.

Sergiu Jaman, founder of Agrobiznes: “We are sure that agriculture can become attractive for young specialists immediately after graduation. We have met many young people who want to develop a healthy activity at home, that is why we believe in the success of this platform. Together with young people and private companies, we will continue to identify the problems that make the agricultural sector less attractive at the moment, but also will find the solutions.”

AgTech has become the first Academy in Moldova for young specialists passionate about agriculture. It will function as a platform for dialogue between potential employers and employees and also offer young people the opportunity to develop the skills required by companies in the field. The trainings come with a series of practical benefits and at the end of the course, young people will have the opportunity to bring their knowledge gained to the top five companies in the agricultural sector. Thus, the training program will ensure:

a platform that provides a dialogue between young professionals and the private sector, but also new employment opportunities after the completion of internships;
organizing online courses in marketing, entrepreneurship and digitalization of agriculture, in partnership with Startup Academy;
organizing webinars for students and managers of agricultural educational institutions;
career guidance and presentation of the most important aspects that must be taken into account during studies in order to meet the requirements of the employer;
development of software skills for young specialists, including teamwork, communication, and results focused.

Those who want to participate in the training program can register by accessing the link https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeCil0YRmvm2usSMdXseYbnLuU5h-c5MAXiXHZosLKPc8Ei3w/viewform?gxids=

International partners support the digitization of sectors of the national economy

Currently, with the Startup Moldova “Digital IMPACT” initiative, several sectoral solutions involving information technologies have been identified. Some of them are dedicated to the various branches of agriculture and the food industry:

beekeeping – digital platform for preventing bee poisoning and facilitating communication between authorities, beekeepers, and farmers
fruit export – a platform to consolidate promotion of local fruit producers for foreign markets
online trade in agricultural products – “marketplace”, an integrated platform for marketing products and services to farmers and local companies
wine industry – platform dedicated to guided tastings.

The implementation of Startup Moldova “Digital IMPACT” takes place with the support of international partners.

Scott Hocklander, Head of the USAID Mission to Moldova: “The Startup Moldova “Digital IMPACT” program contributes to strengthening the ecosystem development effort, guided by innovation and knowledge of the technology industry. This project is part of a broader public-private partnership, which USAID supports in target sectors, to develop innovative businesses and support the integration of information technologies in different sectors of the economy. USAID believes in Moldova’s potential and in the ability of the private sector to implement information technologies in its day-to-day work. We support the successful development of different sectors because difficult situations require advanced solutions.”

Anna Lyberg, Swedish Ambassador to Moldova: “Sweden supports digital transformation globally, and in Moldova supports innovation, entrepreneurship and the ICT sector through programs launched by the TEKWILL Project. Thus, Sweden contributes to increasing IT skills and capacity by promoting innovative solutions in all sectors, including non-IT. The integration of information technologies in different spheres of life and the creation of alternative platforms can contribute to providing multiple opportunities for business development, economic growth and improving living conditions in Moldova, in general.”

The TEKWILL project – The revolution begins!

The Moldova Startup Program “Digital IMPACT” is part of the TEKWILL Project, implemented by the National Association of ICT Companies, with the financial support of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and Sweden. “Tekwill” was created in 2017 as a Center of Excellence of the ICT sector in Moldova, with the main purpose of aligning the field with current market requirements. Aiming to contribute to increasing the competitiveness of the IT industry and other strategic sectors of the economy, the center has expanded its fields of activity, becoming in 2019 a complex nationwide project, with the slogan “The revolution begins!”. The basic objective of the TEKWILL Project, as a platform dedicated to the progress of the IT sector, is to ensure a major impact on the economic development of the country by improving the entrepreneurial and educational capacities of society, but also by increasing the research and development potential of education, in line with the demand in the IT market. More details on www.tekwill.md

Cahul Becomes the First Regional “Startup City” in Southern Moldova

The city of Cahul will become the first “StartUp City” in the southern region of the Republic of Moldova. According to a grant agreement signed between the Association of Information and Communication Technology Companies of Moldova (ATIC) and Sweden on September 15 several investments will be made in the region to strengthen the potential of the digital economy. This will increase local employment in the field of ICT, develop businesses based on innovations, and increase the competitiveness and attractiveness of the region.

The project “EU4Moldova: StartUp City Cahul” will be implemented with the financial assistance of the European Union and aligns with the priorities of the Eastern Partnership and addresses the sustainable socio-economic development of Cahul and neighboring localities, completing the regional coverage of the cooperation assistance provided to the Republic of Moldova by the European Union.

Anna Lyberg, Ambassador of Sweden to the Republic of Moldova: “Sweden actively supports the development of the ICT sector in Moldova. Through this initiative, together with the Delegation of the European Union, we continue our previous experiences and support the country’s digital transformation and innovation. With StartUp City Cahul we will support regional development, especially in the Cahul region, through innovation and entrepreneurship. We will strengthen employment opportunities and provide opportunities for young people, including women and girls, in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) so that they can choose a career in IT in the future.”

Ana Chirița, ATIC Strategic Projects Director: “The IT sector reached figures beyond expectations in 2019, and this leads to the idea of directing efforts to expand the ICT sector at the national level. We want to contribute and transform the city of Cahul into a favorable region for investment, innovation and entrepreneurship. We are going to build a center of excellence in IT, which will become a catalyst for the development of the city and adjacent localities. We will develop several programs dedicated to any age – pupils, students, teachers, young professionals, etc. – in order to expand development opportunities in the region and create the premises for connecting the talent and potential of human capital with the possibilities offered by national and local IT companies.”

“EU4Moldova: StartUp City Cahul”- contributing to regional development through innovation

From now and until 2024 several investments will be implemented that will contribute to the development of the Cahul region. Over the next four years, innovation partnerships between the private sector, the public sector, and educational institutions will be encouraged; technology will be promoted as a solution to community problems and the study of STEM disciplines so that IT becomes more attractive for everyone regardless of age or gender; and the capacities of innovative startups in various sectors and investment readiness will be created and strengthened.

The EU4Innovation Center – a regional center of excellence in IT, is to be created in Cahul. With an area of 1500 m2, the center will develop several local services and about 137 programs and activities, in order to encourage the use of technology.

“StartUp City Cahul” will also support STEM education in close synergy with other existing and already developed initiatives by ATIC and Tekwill. This will be done by adapting and implementing educational programs for training and expanding skills, which meet the needs of the private sector.

11,500 students from Cahul and over 50,000 students from 200 schools across the country will study the subjects of the future,
500 teachers will improve their digital skills in training programs,
the study programs for at least 6 courses will be updated by the decision of the Ministry of Education, Research and Culture, in order to increase the attractiveness of studying STEM subjects.

Also, about 300 students from universities and colleges will attend training courses in IT and related fields.

Supporting the development of entrepreneurship is also among the project’s priorities. Thus, several actions will be taken to facilitate the creation of local startups, strengthen their development capacity, and prepare for investment. Over the next 4 years, it is expected that at least:

20 local startups will benefit from assistance and support,
15 non-IT initiatives will be supported,
2,600 people will benefit from entrepreneurship education programs,
24 events will be organized for entrepreneurs.

The project will be implemented by the National Association of ICT Companies (ATIC), with financial assistance from the European Union (EU), provided through Sweden.

In June 2020, Sweden concluded a contribution agreement with the European Delegation for the implementation of the “EU4Moldova: StartUp City Cahul” project. The EUR 6.8 million project from the EU Delegated Funds for ICT Development is part of the single EU support framework for Moldova 2017–2020, section 1: “Economic development and opportunities, including sustainable and inclusive growth”.

Sweden’s participation in this project strengthens its own initiatives to encourage women and girls to become actively involved in ICT. The Association of Information and Communication Technology Companies of Moldova (ATIC) promotes the development of the ICT sector in partnership with private sector companies, universities, government institutions and international organizations and facilitates the exchange of good practices between members. ATIC’s mission is to promote a more favorable ICT business climate. Currently, the associated companies within ATIC represent over 60% of the market value of the ICT sector in Moldova.

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YOUNG PEOPLE IN NORTHERN MOLDOVA HAVE MORE OPPORTUNITIES FOR EMPLOYMENT IN IT

YOUNG PEOPLE IN NORTHERN MOLDOVA HAVE MORE OPPORTUNITIES FOR EMPLOYMENT IN IT

It is never too late for a career change! The Republic of Moldova has a major shortage of experienced or beginner IT specialists, especially at the regional level. Although the industry offers all the possibilities and conditions for talent and knowledge to be capitalized in any corner of the country, IT companies face an acute shortage of human resources, a constraint that significantly limits their development. For example, 26 IT companies operate in the Balti region, employing about 190 people – far below the expectations and potential of jobs that local businesses could offer.

In order to expand development opportunities in the regions and create the premises for connecting human capital with the possibilities offered by local IT companies, the Tekwill project in partnership with the “Optim” project developed the “IT Scholarship Program” in Bălți and Cahul. Beneficiaries included both young people with experience in IT eager to acquire new skills and employees from other sectors who chose to make a change in profession.

IT career – an important asset for young people in the Balti region

According to the World Economic Forum, in the coming years, about 90% of jobs will require ICT skills. Knowledge about programming is an important advantage in the labor market, according to program participants. In Bălți, young people studied the “Web Development” course, one of the most popular specialties in the field. They learned how to build, create, and maintain websites: design issues, content publishing, programming, and data management. The course was conducted online, and the training included state-of-the-art technologies, innovative learning methods and techniques with a proven impact in developing the skills and competencies required by the IT industry. Scholarship recipients received a coverage of 70% of the total cost of training. The finalists received graduation certificates.

Doina Florea, participant in the program: “I have been working as a computer science teacher for more than 11 years, in Rujnița village, Ocnița district. Because the IT field is constantly evolving, I have to keep up and participate directly in professional development courses. That is because I want to give the students I teach complete and current knowledge and help them develop their personal potential, so that in the future they can choose a career in the field.”

Alexandrina Mihalachi, participant in the program: “IT specialties are in great demand on the labor market. That is why I want to get a profession in this field; therefore, I continue to develop. I decided to apply to the Scholarship Program in IT because the IT industry is constantly changing, and I want to keep pace with new trends. I want to excel as a Front-End Developer, and I will continue to train myself in this regard. I intend to work for a well-known company, both in the Republic of Moldova and internationally.”

Local IT companies are ready to offer new jobs

The deficit of IT specialists is felt by all Moldovan companies regardless of their geographical region. The company’s representatives in Balti claim that they are ready to hire a much larger number of specialists if they were available on the market.

The IT Scholarship Program was implemented together with the Association for the Development of Electronic Communications and Innovative Technologies (ACETI), an association set up to contribute to the development of innovation in engineering and digital technologies, especially in the northern region.

Ion Bodrug, president of ACETI, Bălți: “The global pandemic has shown us how important the IT field is and how necessary it is for global education and digital skills to be promoted but also acquired by our young people. Practically, every company needs an IT specialist and investing in the professional training of young people could be a solution for the development of local companies and the creation of new jobs. Through training programs, we motivate young people to build their careers at home, and with the local workforce, local companies will be interested in coming to the regions.”

With the first edition, the IT Scholarship Program was developed in two regions of the country, Bălți and Cahul. The initiative was carried out with the support of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) within the Project “Optimum – Opportunities through Technologies and Innovation in Moldova”, implemented by Helvetas Swiss Intercooperation in partnership with the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Republic of Moldova, with the support from the United States Development Agency and Sweden in the Tekwill Project.

Olesea Vieru, ICT Sector Coordinator, “Optim”: “The“ Optim ”project aims to stimulate and improve selected market systems and reduce regional disparities by increasing the private sector and facilitating innovation networks, as well as developing skills and access to information. The development of ICT skills and increased access to information on employment opportunities in regions outside Chisinau aims to reduce inequalities between rural and urban populations, increasing access to well-paid jobs in this sector. The courses launched in Bălți and Cahul with Tekwill improve the access to learning, retraining and employment in the field of ICT of men, women, and young people in the regions. We are pleased that this initiative has led to a fruitful partnership between Tekwill and the actors in the localities concerned, which opens up new possibilities for cooperation in the regions in the future.”

Ana Chirița, director of the Tekwill project: “This initiative is a first step for the development of the IT sector and the training of the workforce in the field, at regional level. The program is a synergy of the “Optim” and Tekwill projects to empower young people in the northern region with relevant knowledge to obtain qualifications and skills adapted to the current needs of the market. The second edition of the IT Scholarship Program will begin soon, and the training will take place both online and offline. These courses will be organized by experienced mentors as well, according to training programs specially designed and adjusted to the current rigors of the industry. In this way, we will offer young people the opportunity to explore their potential, to develop, to discover the world of information technologies and to choose more easily a career in the IT field.”