Digital talent summit to explore bridging digital gap in APAC

the ASEAN Foundation and Huawei will virtually host the Asia Pacific Innovation Day – Digital Talent Summit 2021. The online summit is aimed at bringing together policy makers, researchers and industry experts to share solutions and best practices in building a sustainable ecosystem that will help foster digital talents in Asia Pacific.

The COVID-19 pandemic has forcefully accelerated the digital economy over the last 1.5 years. As companies and organisations are undergoing rapid digital transformation and seeking skilled knowledge workers to meet the challenges brought by the rise of digital economy, it becomes apparent that there remains a huge gap in digital talents across the Asia Pacific region.

A Korn Ferry research finds that Asia Pacific is facing an imminent labor shortage of 47 million people by 2030 and an annual opportunity cost of US$4.238 trillion. According to PwC’s 20th CEO Survey, more than 50% of APAC CEOs say it’s difficult to hire digital talent with the right skills.

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To solve the digital talent gap and seize the leapfrog opportunity in the digital era, governments across the region have been actively strengthening the policy and providing support. At the summit, governments’ leaders from countries across the region, such as Indonesia, Thailand, Cambodia, Malaysia, Philippines and Sri Lanka will share their practice, policy suggestions and vision in cultivating the digital talent ecosystem. Namal Rajapaksa – Cabinet Minister of Youth & Sports, Minister of Development Co-ordination and Monitoring and State Minister of Digital Technology and Enterprise Development will also be keynote speaker at the event.

A sustainable digital talent ecosystem requires joint efforts from government, corporations, industrial organizations and educational institutions. Notable speakers from ASEAN, UNESCO, International Telecommunication Union, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy and Maxis Communications will be featured in the panel discussion on the topic of “Digital Talent as Key to Sustainable Recovery & Development” at the summit.

“The creation of a sustainable talent development ecosystem in Asia Pacific requires forward-thinking policymaking and strong public-private partnership. A conducive learning ecosystem will help to groom a generation of digital talents that will someday lead the region’s digital future,” said Dr. Yang Mee Eng, Executive Director of ASEAN Foundation.

As the co-organizer of this summit, Huawei this July announced its Seeds for the Future Program 2.0, through which the tech company plans to invest $150 million in digital talent development over the next five years. The program is expected to benefit more than 3 million additional people globally.

In 2008, Huawei began to roll out talent development programs, and has since benefited more than 1.54 million people from over 150 countries through scholarships, technology competitions and digital skills training. For example, initiated in 2008 in Thailand, the Seeds for the Future Program is designed to inspire local talents and encourage seeds for the society to tackle digital challenges.

“The world ahead will be one dominated by devices: connecting, sensing, and reacting to everything around us. We hope our education programs not only reaffirms our commitment to social responsibility, but also prepares the next generation of experts to design and navigate this digital landscape. Our future depends on it,” said Jay Chen, Vice President at Huawei Asia Pacific.

The summit can be viewed live at https://www.huawei.com/en/events/asia-pacific-innovation-day-2021 and ASEAN Foundation’s official Facebook page on November 3 from 9:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. (GMT+7).

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About ASEAN Foundation

Three decades after ASEAN was established, ASEAN leaders recognised that: there remained inadequate shared prosperity, ASEAN awareness and contact among the people of ASEAN. It was of this concern that ASEAN leaders established ASEAN Foundation in Jakarta, Indonesia, at ASEAN’s 30th Anniversary Summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on 15 December 1997. The ASEAN Foundation is an organisation from and for the people of ASEAN. The Foundation exists because of one vision: to build a cohesive and prosperous ASEAN Community. As an ASEAN body, the Foundation is tasked to support ASEAN mainly in promoting awareness, identity, interaction and development of the people of ASEAN.

To learn more, visit www.aseanfoundation.org

About Huawei

Founded in 1987, Huawei is a leading global provider of information and communications technology (ICT) infrastructure and smart devices. We have more than 194,000 employees, and we operate in more than 170 countries and regions, serving more than three billion people around the world.

Our vision and mission is to bring digital to every person, home and organization for a fully connected, intelligent world. To this end, we will drive ubiquitous connectivity and promote equal access to networks; bring cloud and artificial intelligence to all four corners of the earth to provide superior computing power where you need it, when you need it; build digital platforms to help all industries and organizations become more agile, efficient, and dynamic; redefine user experience with AI, making it more personalized for people in all aspects of their life, whether they’re at home, in the office, or on the go.

For more information, please visit https://www.huawei.com/en/events/asia-pacific-innovation-day-2021