According to the policy, appropriate levels of education and ICT literacy are required for the development of a knowledge-based economy in Lebanon, in which the population is able to access, absorb, share and use information and knowledge efficiently. Below are specific “statement of requirements” of the National e-Strategy for Lebanon that are necessary to achieve the ICT policy objective for the education sector:

Utilise ICT for Formal Education

Changes in the current primary, secondary, vocational and university education systems are required in order to implement progressive educational methods that utilise ICT as an educational tool, such as computer-based training (CBT) and e-learning. These changes will include modernising current curricula to exploit ICT for learning purposes; encouraging and providing more affordable access for educational institutions to the internet; initiating campaigns to identify already developed educational content that utilises localised content and language; encouraging the development of e-learning and CBT; supporting the proliferation of virtual universities and educational institute; promoting the use of educational web sites that provide support to formal education; extending and improving the delivery of the existing SchoolNet project to include all private and public schools; and encouraging and facilitating ICT research and development through the establishment of a university portal or network.

Utilise ICT for Informal Education

The importance of informal education to developing a knowledge-based economy can not be overstated. Therefore, the government will provide internet access to the segments of society that are challenged in various ways in order to ensure that education is informally accessible to them at little or no cost. In order to achieve this, the government will support the proliferation of automated and ICT integrated public libraries; support and encourage the development of e-learning and CBT for informal educational subjects; encourage the development of locally relevant educational material; promote the utilisation of ICTs to encourage lifelong learning; promote the use of educational “citizen guides” in various areas such as law, health, education, and other issues; and, use radio and television for the improvement of informal educational levels.

Improve Formal Education in ICT

ICT has recently been introduced to secondary programmes in the formal education system. The government will promote the extension of ICT to every level of the formal education system by identifying the required ICT literacy levels for various educational levels; amassing support from the international community and the private sector for the development of local and national educational institutions and capacities; encouraging the use of pre-existing ICT training material to avoid redevelopment of materials; delegating the initial responsibility for ICT training to educational establishments outside of the public education system until it is equipped to learn and transfer ICT knowledge to students in schools and universities; initiating professional development for teachers; encouraging and supporting ICT training institutes through promotion, incentives and exemptions; and, encouraging the involvement of the ICT sector in formal education.

Improve Informal Education in ICT

Informal education has and continues to be instrumental in the development of ICT. The government will encourage this process by improving ICT skills for citizens through media such as radio and television; supporting public libraries and reading places assisted by ICT; raising awareness of the importance of informal education through e-learning, the web, and CBT; providing locally relevant content to Lebanon and the region; encouraging English language training, as it is the most ubiquitous language on the web; and, encouraging ICT certification in academia and training institutes.

Develop ICT Skills in the Private and Public Sectors

Skilled and capable knowledge workers are one of the cornerstones of the knowledge-based economy. Therefore, the government will develop ICT skills in both the private and the public sectors by encouraging ICT training institutes by providing them with incentives, connecting them with international firms having similar objectives, and involving them in national training requirements; encouraging the certification of workforces on ICT products that are non-technical in nature but of general use for knowledge workers; launching e-learning projects that provide the Lebanese workforce with improved ICT and organisational skills; identifying and promoting the use of ICT skills training on the web; defining ICT literacy levels for various jobs enabling managers to perform regular evaluations and develop their staff; streamlining career paths to include growth in ICT skills; encouraging collaboration between academic institutions and the ICT sector to ensure that the educational programmes provided by such institutions improve the ICT skills of various job types; ensuring that the Ministry of Education coordinates with universities and the ICT sector when developing its own ICT educational curricula; encouraging small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to train their workforces on ICT skills and provide the necessary ICT infrastructure; developing training programmes for ICT skills throughout the public sector; and, improving the availability of educational materials that support ICT skills by encouraging technical book fairs, as well as reducing taxes on books and compact discs (CDs).