NTPC is at the Forefront of ICT Courses and Engagemen
The world has battled with the ruthless and rapidly escalating surge in COVID-19 cases since early 2020. Apart from posing serious challenges to the health system, the economies of even the most developed countries suffered massive losses.
Thanks to the prior adoption of technology, the concept of virtual life became a dire necessity as many professionals started to “work from home”.
Organisations realised that to survive, migration to digital platforms was necessary.
While many primary industries faced challenges, those that had embraced disruptive revolutionary technologies such as Industry 4.0, the Internet of Things, Big Data, and Artificial Intelligence had a ray of hope because these technologies greatly supported business continuity.
Consequently, as we join the digital spaces more than ever before, it is becoming of paramount importance to discuss ethics in the field of ICT.
Ethics, policies and legislations
Certain buzz words synonymous with ethics are integrity, principles, choice, conscience, fairness, right and responsibility.
Ethical issues related to the implementation and use of ICT constitute the conditions for attitudes and values specifying actions and behaviour.
Proclaimed by the UN General Assembly in 1948, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is the most comprehensive and widely accepted document that articulates a common standard for human rights for people of all nations.
It largely remains the best source as it was drafted by representatives with different legal and cultural backgrounds from all world regions, ensuring an inclusive approach. Constitutions and national legislation are also said to be balanced when the principles of UNDR are embedded within them.
The national legislation helps organisations in creating their ICT policies.
According to studies, organisations that have a code of conduct have fewer instances of noncompliance because it provides employees with a clear direction of the acceptable level of ethical conduct.
Standard operating procedures help employees with an outline of expected job procedures and mitigate the risk of skill drain through better knowledge management practices.
Current ethical issues in ICT
Just as we learn about ethics, hygiene, safety, and considerate practices when dealing with everyday scenarios, the virtual world also requires a certain degree of ethics and safety. In Fiji’s context, some unethical practices include spreading misinformation, disinformation, plagiarism, and computer crimes.
An understanding of legislation pertaining to the use and practice of ICT in Fiji allows organisations to frame policies for good practice. Before sharing any content, we need to question its sources, validity and consider its possible consequences. Every gadget user must be responsible for the data the devices contain and transmit. Users must be encouraged to ensure they contribute to sustainable, environmentally friendly practices as consumers of energy.
Our actions should be respectful of fundamental human rights and the environment. Therefore, ICT professionals and students should rigorously advocate for protection against cyberbullying and hate speech based on religion/ ethnic group, sexual orientation, or socioeconomic status.
It spreads negativity with prolonged detrimental effects on the victims.
Misinformation and breach of intellectual property rights mars the genuine efforts of those who work hard and discourages individuals from continuing in their efforts to create unique, helpful content, products, and services for the country.
Some of our challenges remain inclusive legislation, privacy, social justice, computer abuse, intellectual property, accuracy, accessibility, social media (hate speech), sustainability: ethical and social responsibility, and compliance frameworks.
The clean-up campaign for Nabukalou Creek in Suva revealed non-biodegradable waste and computer-related waste, indicating that awareness of sustainable ICT practices is needed. Citizens, organisations, and communities need awareness of existing legislation, policies, and industry standards around cyberbullying, cyber security, sustainability, and Green ICT as we are all users of ICT.
NTPC’s IT courses and international industry engagement
NTPC’s Department of Information Technology recently delivered a public lecture for University of West Indies where we discussed ethics, policies, and legislations for ICT professionals.
Participants are in the process of creating national and organisational ICT policies; therefore, the lecture provided an opportunity to learn best practices from the Pacific region. Our role as ICT academics and trainers involves contributing to the nation’s workforce through regular consultations with industry stakeholders.
We foster a healthy professional relationship with the Fijian industry stakeholders as well as regional/international ICT bodies.
This allows for a greater contribution to Pacific-related issues.
ICT is the catalyst in any field or discipline; subsequently, ICT professionals, will need to develop a vested interest in the developments in all other disciplines to learn about opportunities for improvements using ICT.
Our team engages in international events and opportunities for collaboration.
In the wake of the pandemic, contactless operations have become a clear choice to ensure the continuity of daily work without the risk of exacerbating the spread of the virus.
The world of ICT offers numerous virtual methods of work that can help us to continue to contribute towards our economy while ensuring we are adhering to the mandatory covid safe protocols.
The department of ICT offers a wide range of courses available through blended and online modes.
Our courses range from information and digital literacy, customised training, and consulting to address business and organisational needs to specialised professional certifications offered through partnerships with internationally acclaimed institutes and security courses that can help organisations and individuals prepare for the impending rise of IoT and mitigate potential threats.
We provide training and consultancy for ICT solutions deployment, projects, and policies/ procedures with international benchmarking.
Our team of qualified and experienced trainers can provide training and consultancy on ICT related solutions for any business or discipline.
Some of the programmes offered by NTPC for participants who intend to design policies and standard operating procedures are:
Disaster recover and business continuity planning
Understanding and implementing ISO 20000-1:2018-information technology - service management
TAFE- Diploma in IT
Customised industry consultancy
Hope for the Pacific
The Asia Pacific Top Level Domain/Pacific Internet Governance Forum 2021 brought together professionals from around the Pacific, Asia, Caribbean and Europe.
It discussed how the Pacific could leverage technology to increase productivity and harness the existing expertise of our people through Pacific regionalism.
The NTPC supports a digital Fiji and is ready to train the region with the best ICT courses and consultancy.
Students learn ethical practices in IT courses at NTPC
Information Technology professionals Ranil Shandil and Rahul Rajesh have been playing integral roles in the ICT field in Fiji, having studied at the National Training and Productivity Centre.
Mr Shandil, who is a construction worker, said IT is an important sector that can help in the development of the country.
“I have learnt about policymaking and strategic planning in an ICT department/organisation, its importance in ICT, copyright statements and their effect on individuals and organisations,” he said.
“We got to know about non-ethical practises in an ICT working environment, data storage rules and regulations since most data is available online through various social media sites and cloud.
“After completing the program, we realised good ICT practises are not prevalent in Fiji, so as ICT students, we will try to make a difference.”
Meanwhile, Mr Rajesh, the director of the Office Tech Fiji Pte Ltd said the IT programmes at NTPC prepare students for future challenges.
“The journey into the world of ICT Ethics, copyrights and privacy, we learnt the dos and donts of the industry. The unit lecturer was well versed with the topics and provided us with a vast amount of knowledge through her years of experience about real-world scenarios, which allowed us to learn more about the subject matter through her,” Mr Rajesh said.
“The course further identifies legislative and governance barriers and the need to develop and enhance this further. It provides strategic knowledge to carry out ICT business. Personally, it enhances my skill set in this industry, which I will implement in my personal and professional life. “
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