ICT skills are the global currency of tomorrow. The job market will increasingly require significant ICT skills and people possessing these skills will continue to be the most marketable. We cannot afford to undervalue skills and human capital, and ensuring affordable and equal access to ICT skills is imperative in any innovative economy.  To help Europe emerge from the recent economic crisis, we must act to meet the challenges of a global, knowledge-based society by ensuring our people have the skills that keep Europe competitive. 
There is some good news:  the importance of e-skills competency to Europe’s economy and society is increasingly and broadly recognised.  The new EU Commission, for example, continues with its long-term e-skills strategy to boost the productivity and the employability of its workforce, enabling a response to global competitive challenges.
Europe is not a homogenous region, however.  Central and Eastern Europe has, in some ways, one of the longest journeys ahead.  There are two key issues that have significantly affected labour force potential and competitiveness in the Central and Eastern Europe region in particular: the current economic crisis and an aging demographic.   The number of unemployed in the EU increased by more than eight million in the 2007-2010 period; CEE countries are among the hardest hit in the deepest global recession for generations. Emerging from this difficult economic state will not be easy.
But we also know that the people from these countries are resilient and driven.   Key to dealing with current challenges is retraining people so they are equipped with the skills that will make them not just employable, but dynamic drivers of recovery.  I believe e-skills will be the differentiating factor for how this region transforms itself, how it creates new ideas, products and services and how it prospers in a global digital economy.  New technologies are - and will increasingly be - a dynamic tool for workforce efficiency, but skills to use these tools also then becomes critical. A recent IDC employers’ survey found that in five years time 90 percent of all jobs will require ICT skills. Never has there been a more critical time for the region to invest in developing and enhancing e-skills.
To this end, the knowledge, skills, competences and creativity of the CEE workforce and citizens need to meet the highest standards and be constantly updated. In addition to helping professionals advance their skills, it is vital that we focus on helping the vulnerable in our society—young or old, unemployed or disabled—to acquire the critical skills needed to participate in the knowledge economy as productive and engaged citizens. Lifelong learning opportunities must be seized and supported. 
To achieve this, there must be collaboration between governments, academics, industry partners, and non-governmental organisations to find innovative ways to use the power of technology for improved social and economic development.  Microsoft is committed to the EU Commission’s e-skills strategy and Digital Agenda, and has already launched the Skills for Europe project.  Through the European e-Skills Association, formerly known as the ILB, we are also partnering with public authorities, industry, SMEs and other relevant stakeholders on the development and implementation of a long term e-skills and digital literacy agenda. At the grass roots and community level across Central and Eastern Europe, we work with the members of Telecentre-Europe to promote effective skilling programmes and advocate for impactful investment in digital inclusion.  Together, we’ve accomplished a lot – just this week, we’ve helped to support over 55,000 first-ever users get on-line.  But we must do much, much more; for Europe to recover and remain globally competitive, we must help everyone to truly embrace the digital economy.

Vahé Torossian, Vice President, Microsoft Central and Eastern Europe