E-learning programme launched for Bahraini women

Women in Bahrain can now take advantage of a new e-learning programme aimed at helping them improve their IT literacy skills.

The scheme has been launched by Tamkeen and the Bahrain Women Union and the two bodies hope it will help females make a greater contribution to the kingdom's economy and encourage social development, Trade Arabia reports.

A total of 900 women will be taught basic computer skills on courses that last for 60 hours each, while a further 30 hours will be spent developing career skills.

In addition, around 5,500 women will have access to industry-specific training through the e-learning initiative.

Senior manager of human capital development at Tamkeen Amal Al-Kooheji described the initiative as "ambitious", saying the aim is to "open new horizons and different opportunities for Bahraini women wishing to enter the labour market".

She added the move will enable public and private bodies in the Kingdom to benefit from a skilled workforce of women and "help them gain professional experience".

Tamkeen, which was established in 2006 with the aim of encouraging Bahrain's private sector to drive economic development in the nation, sees the initiative as a key aspect of economic empowerment in the country, Ms Al-Kooheji concluded.

E-learning is growing in popularity around the world as a method for teaching students or staff new skills and techniques and many benefits over traditional classroom or lecture-based teaching methods.

It enables students to learn at their own pace and revisit any modules or topics they are less confident about and also lets them work remotely from home or their place of work.

According to Yonhap News, over half of South Korea's population over the age of three have taken advantage of e-learning, with figures from the Ministry of Knowledge Economy showing 52.8 per cent of this demographic had made use of computer education tools in 2011.