Costa Rica Chooses iQ4 to Modernize its Workforce with a Focus on Cybersecurity and Innovation

Costa Rica will access industry-driven training programs, virtual on-the-job learning, and certification through iQ4 and its Cybersecurity Workforce Alliance (CWA) division.

iQ4 Corporation, a centralized workforce development platform that helps students, academia, businesses, and the government collaborate to transform and scale the workforce of the future, announced today that it has been selected by the government of Costa Rica to help modernize the country's workforce with a focus on cybersecurity and cloud technology.

iQ4 has been formally approved in the "Registry of International Providers of Professional Qualification Services of the Innovation and Human Capital Program for Competitiveness" by the Ministry of Science, Technology, and Telecommunications of Costa Rica (MICITT) to collaborate, transform, and scale the workforce of the future in the field of cybersecurity.

"The main reason Costa Rica has successfully attracted foreign direct investment is our talent. With initiatives like this, we continue with a broad strategy of workforce training, retraining, and upskilling to thrive in a rapidly changing corporate environment," said Pilar Madrigal, Director of Investment Advisory at the Costa Rican Investment Promotion Agency, a private, non-profit, and apolitical organization focused on attracting foreign direct investment to Costa Rica.

"The iQ4 programs will allow our community to advance in the fields of cybersecurity and cloud technology. It will be an innovative education that includes academic and on-the-job training. To ensure reaching all students, we are paying special attention to women and communities with lower social development indices," said Cristian Hamilton, IBM, Cybersecurity Leader of Costa Rica.

More than 250 Costa Rican citizens, including students and adults seeking to improve their skills and retrain, will benefit from the financing provided by MICITT and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), which will offer virtual cybersecurity and cloud courses, applied learning projects, and internships on the iQ4 Platform, which has been proven to help students, academia, businesses, and the government develop workforce readiness.

It will also help drive economic development in Costa Rica as the country continues to attract and employ top talent and prominent brands to the country.

"We are thrilled to partner with MICITT, Costa Rica, and all the government organizations that understand the critical nature of empowering the workforce of tomorrow. We are focused on helping close the skills gap in cybersecurity and cloud technology for students across the country with a focus on industries such as information technology, advanced manufacturing, healthcare, agriculture, and tourism," said Frank Cicio, Founder and CEO of iQ4. "Today's world is driven by technology, and we are excited to work with Costa Rica and its citizens to provide them with the knowledge, skills, education, experience, and credentials to advance in their careers and create new opportunities."

iQ4 utilizes a platform that enables applied learning through strategic collaboration between students, academia, and the business world. Costa Rican students will complete the program with industry credentials and up to 350 hours of on-the-job training achieved through courses that include a combination of academic instruction and applied learning.

"The advancement of the digital economy and the fourth industrial revolution puts pressure on the demand for specialized talent in cybersecurity to create the secure and reliable environment required to protect businesses, essential services, and critical infrastructure in countries," said Luis Antonio Vargas, Cisco, Transformation Leader. "Acquiring cybersecurity skills today will greatly contribute to your career and enable you to be a key player in the digital society of the future."

The courses are offered to various students with technical backgrounds, including high school students, community college students, university students, working adults looking to improve their skills, and those seeking to retrain in a new career. The programs will directly impact helping students secure high-value cybersecurity and cloud computing jobs, providing them with national and international employability opportunities to close the global skills gap.

The programs will commence in April 2021.

For more information about iQ4's cloud technology and cybersecurity programs, please visit www.iq4.com.

About iQ4: iQ4 is a workforce and mobility platform that enables applied learning through strategic collaboration between students, academia, and the business world. Skill acquisition during the mentoring program empowers students with relevant knowledge for prospects. Companies can develop the next-generation workforce in accordance with market demands. iQ4 facilitates the creation of a competent workforce by bringing together industry and academia's independent initiatives.