Petra, TAGCAITC Sign Cooperation Agreement

AMMAN (Petra)  ---- May 5, 2013 --- Jordan News Agency (Petra) and Talal Abu-Ghazaleh E-Training/Talal Abu-Ghazaleh Cambridge Information Technology Skills Center (TAGCAITC) signed today a cooperation program agreement in the field of training services.

The agreement was signed by Petra’s Director General Mr. Faisal Al- Shboul and TAGCAITC’s Executive Director Mr. Mustafa Naseraddin. The signing ceremony was attended by Dr. Talal Abu-Ghazaleh, chairman of Talal Abu-Ghazaleh Organisation (TAG-Org).

The program will set up professional cooperation ties in information technologies between the two sides, says Abu-Ghazaleh who applauded Petra as a “School of Jordanian media that sets the example and conveys an honest professional mission.”

“I am looking forward to a new phase of cooperation after Petra’s trainees receive their training and certificates accredited by the most reputable UK based university.”

“Our Organisation has the exclusive right in all Arab countries to grant Cambridge Certificate in Information Technology in Arabic,” Abu-Ghazaleh said.

Al-Shboul commended TAG-Org for its dedicated efforts and programs aimed at serving all Arab countries, which gave the Organisation a global reputation, demonstrated by “this exemplary partnership between the public and private sectors”.

“Our News Agency is keen to keep abreast of developments provide its reporters with all up-to-date technologies so as to make the Agency one that delivers fast coverage of activities and events.”

 “This is not the first agreement of its kind. It is already preceded by a memorandum of understanding between the two sides to develop Petra’s website and improve staff capacities,” Shboul said.

The current cooperation program will have an added value as it offers training and Cambridge University testing services through Petra’s Training Center (PTC), which is hosting the Mass Media Training Center of the Federation of Arab News Agencies (FANA). “It will start on training reporters from other Arab countries as of the end of this month ,” he added .

PTC has held several training courses this year serving over 90 reporters, with the accumulative number of trainees benefiting from the Center, which was established in 2005, exceeding 5000. Such courses included the comprehensive journalistic course, economic journalistic news writing and editing, photography, image processing and videotaping. In addition, several other specialised courses were held including, for example, news headlines, leads, modern mass media and tools and computer skills. Trainees were also given the chance to get a first-hand experience through field training at relevant departments of news, economics, investigations, Arabic editing and television production.

Social corporate responsibility has been of a primary concern for Petra, said Shobul, which made the agency hold courses for the private and public sectors, college journalism and public relations students. The aim was to improve the skills of trainees and give them the skills necessary to perform their duties efficiently.

Meanwhile, Mr. Naseraddin commended the cooperation as a step towards refining the quality of graduates.

“One key area of our cooperation is the International Diploma in IT Skills, which falls in four modules: Microsoft Windows, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Word and Microsoft Internet Explorer,” he stated.

The Cambridge IT Skills Diploma, on the other hand, falls into seven modules: Information technology, Microsoft Windows, Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft PowerPoint, Microsoft Access and Microsoft Internet Explorer.