Reduce the Digital Gap by Increasing E-Skills

The technologies and skills in the ICT sector have boosted in the past forty years, but the profession has not followed this process. Unfortunately low levels of professionalism are typical nowadays. The EU encourages to increase the knowledge, skills and creativity of the European workforce (involved the ICT practitioners) by using effective lifelong learning. The information and communication technologies (ICT) take full advantage of the strategic and operational opportunities. More and more qualified ICT practitioners, e-skilled managers are needed to realize it. That is why the e-skills which increase the competitiveness, productivity of the workforce are in a central aspect in the European policies therefore education providers, governments and industries are to accomplish these processes have to collaborate and cooperate. (C) 2013 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.