Currently, four million technology professionals are immediately needed to bridge the gap in the cybersecurity industry, according to the World Economic Forum, emphasizing the widening shortage of global technology talents.
The world is undergoing a major and rapid technology upgrade, revolutionizing various industries, including telecommunications, and ushering us into the golden era of digital innovation. This significant transformation in the digital era will provide entirely new opportunities and business models.
As the world continues to thrive in technological advancements, the tech sector’s demand for cutting-edge skills increases, raising concerns about addressing the shortage of technology talents.
This talent shortage has a substantial consequence in several key areas including software development, cybersecurity, machine learning, data analysis, and even artificial intelligence (AI), which are crucial to digital transformation across the globe.
Factors Contributing to the Shortage of Tech Talent
The advent of new technologies has required a skill upgrade for IT professionals, in line with their active contribution to advancing the digital society.
Technology’s rapid progression has brought a myriad of benefits, but it has also forced companies to adapt to avoid being left behind. It instigated a gap in the skills of current IT professionals, accentuating a transformative point where education and training opportunities are much more needed than before.
Providing IT professionals with the necessary resources and learning platforms is essential to bridging the gap, ensuring we remain at the vanguard of technological evolution. Limited educational resources may lead to outdated skills in ICT graduates, making them unable to meet the demands of the industry.
Furthermore, without the right talents, the pace of technological advancement will significantly slow down, delaying projects and hindering further innovations. The lack of skilled IT labor and the retirement of its existing experienced professionals would considerably impact the progress of current technology.
In a recent study, the International Data Corporation (IDC) projected that more than 90% of global organizations will be impacted by the shortage of technology talents by 2026.
In the realm of cybersecurity, a concerning 90% of companies in the UAE highlighted a shortage of talent. Specifically, 51% of these companies reported having over ten vacant positions in their cybersecurity departments during the survey period. Notably, 95% of these organizations plan to leverage AI technologies to fill at least 10% of these vacant cybersecurity roles, highlighting AI integration as a notable contributing factor exacerbating the shortage of tech talent.
Moreover, the number of organizations implementing artificial intelligence (AI) as an alternative to human talent has grown 270% in the past four years and tripled in the past year, according to a Gartner Inc. CIO Survey.
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Addressing the Global Tech Talent Shortage
To address the global tech talent shortage and drive digital skills, several companies and initiatives have taken proactive measures. Ericsson and Vodafone Oman have partnered for social impact, focusing on enhancing digital competencies.
In the UAE, Minister Omar bin Sultan Al Olama, the Minister of State for Artificial Intelligence, Digital Economy, and Remote Work Applications, emphasized the importance of digital skills in the era of generative AI.
In 2023, the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority collaborated with Smart Umm Al Quwain to launch the DGOV Academy in Umm Al Quwain, a pioneering initiative designed to boost digital transformation expertise.
Qatar is making significant strides with its National Skilling Program, launched by the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology in collaboration with Microsoft. This ambitious program aims to train 50,000 people across various demographics by 2025, accelerating sustainable human development and promoting digital transformation.
Similarly, du is equipping future digital innovation leaders through its Future X Graduate Program, while Huawei and HBKU have inaugurated the AI ICT Lab in Qatar to develop digital talents.
On a broader scale, the World Summit on the Information Society Forum (WSIS Forum 2023) hosted a High-Level Policy Session addressing the topic of “Bridging Digital Divides,” with the ITU joining the discussion.
Additionally, e& has partnered with international organizations to enhance digital competency, further contributing to efforts aimed at bridging the digital skills gap and fostering a digitally adept workforce globally.
Related: Tech Talent: ICT Skills in Demand
Motivating Women to Participate in ICT
Historically, technology has stereotypically been perceived as a male-dominated world, with women struggling to find their place in the industry.
Since then, women have made remarkable contributions, with some becoming iconic and influential figures in the industry, particularly Ada Lovelace, who was recognized as a prolific programmer for her insightful impact on technology. Another is Radia Perlman, known as the ‘Mother of the Internet’ for her invention of the algorithm behind the Spanning Tree Protocol (STP).
According to the United Nations Women in Tech, 57% of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) graduates in the Middle East are women and 34% of the region's tech-focused startups were founded by women.
Related: Girls Currently Being Left Behind in Digital World, Finds UN Report
To narrow the ICT gender gap, Slovenia launched an initiative centered around digital education to empower women, underscoring the country’s objective of achieving 25% female representation among their ICT professionals. This vision and goal were discussed during the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Telecommunication Standardization Bureau (TSB) meeting in May this year in Poland where solutions for bridging the gender gap were raised.
The ITU has also led programs and initiatives for the inclusion and empowerment of women in the digital landscape, such as the International Girls in ICT Day, African Girls Can Code Initiative (AGCCI), and Americas Girls Can Code (AGCC) to train and empower young women to become computer programmers, creators, and designers, bridging the gap in the ICT digital gender divide.
Additionally, the ITU, along with the Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF) and the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS), launched an initiative to enhance access to digital technologies and skills for women in Least Developed Countries (LDCs), particularly in Burundi, Ethiopia, and Haiti.
Online digital skills training for AI, cybersecurity, and the Internet of Things, were also made available across different platforms. Notable examples include the CISCO EQUALS Learning Space which provides various courses to help build technical skills, and the NVIDIA AI learning essentials which offer knowledge, skills, and technical certification for AI career advancement.
Also Read: Building the ICT Workforce: Challenges and Opportunities
Final Thoughts
In any workforce, especially within the technology sector, finding and retaining talent is paramount to meeting the demands of the industry.
The IT workforce plays a significant role in driving business operations with efficiency and ease. Their responsibilities, which include safeguarding the company’s digital assets, are pivotal, making their skills even more valuable.
Regardless of gender, the tech industry will continue to benefit from the brilliance and talent that professionals bring, ushering all sectors into a more advanced and intelligent world.
While skills can be developed over time, finding people with passion and genuine interest in the technology field is imperative. The ICT sector may appear complex to many, but the technical expertise and dedication to innovation of these professionals will drive the advancement and growth of our economies and industries.
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