ECDL Foundation
ECDL (European Computer Driving Licence) is the European Standard in end-user computer skills. It is a certification in the practical use of computers and computer applications. ECDL is referred to as ICDL (International Computer Driving Licence) outside of Europe. As ECDL gained prominence in Europe, the number of candidates exceeded 1 million and continued to rise; this success attracted the attention of countries outside of Europe who began to take a strong interest in the concept. ECDL was subsequently introduced outside of Europe, where the certification became known as ICDL (International Computer Driving Licence).
ECDL Foundation is an international organisation dedicated to raising digital competence standards in the workforce, education and society. Our certification programmes, delivered through an active network in more than 100 countries, enable individuals and organisations to assess, build and certify their competence in the use of computers and digital tools to the globally-recognised ECDL standard, known as ICDL worldwide.
Computer societies and international organisations in Africa and South America began promoting ICDL, and a milestone was reached in 1999, when UNESCO, through its Cairo office, signed an agreement with ECDL Foundation to become the national operator for several Arab States. Shortly afterwards, ICDL was launched in the North American and Asian markets.
As a non-profit social enterprise ECDL Foundation (ICDL Foundation) benefits from the unique support of experts from national computer societies and partners worldwide to develop vendor-independent standards which define the skills and knowledge required to use digital technology effectively. We work with education and training partners, local and regional authorities, national governments, international development organisations as well as public and private sector employers in all sectors, in the delivery of our programmes.
The quality and reputation of ICDL is built on almost twenty years of experience in delivering our certification programmes to over 15 million people and in more than 40 languages worldwide, with more than 2.5 million ICDL tests taken annually. Our success is maintained by our ongoing innovation in certification programme development, our commitment to rigorous test design methodologies, and consistent adherence to our quality assurance standards.
ECDL Foundation supports the initiatives of National Operators of the programme in Europe and the Arab States from our headquarters in Dublin, Ireland and our European office in Brussels, Belgium. We have also established three regional operations – ICDL Africa (based in Rwanda), ICDL Asia (based in Singapore) and ICDL Americas (based in Panama). All ECDL Foundation operations work closely with regional, national and local partners to develop the global network of ICDL Accredited Test Centres.
Mission
To enable proficient use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) that empowers individuals, organisations and society, through the development, promotion, and delivery of quality certification programmes throughout the world.
Values
ECDL Foundation’s values are:
- Social Responsibility
- Vendor Independence
- Quality
Quality Standards
ECDL Foundation’s certification programmes are designed, validated, and approved by academics and industry experts from around the world. We continually develop our range of certification programmes, in line with market needs and technological advancements.
Worldwide Quality Assurance of ECDL Foundation Certification Programmes
ECDL Foundation defines Quality Assurance Standards, which all national operators must adhere to in the implementation and promotion of our certification programmes. We regularly visit and audit the National Operators of our programmes, and all accredited test centres within a country are regularly audited by the national operator. These audits ensure that programme delivery around the world is consistent with our Quality Assurance Standards and that the international reputation for the quality of our programmes is upheld.
History
- 1995 – CEPIS Task Force Creates ECDL Concept
- 1997 – ECDL Foundation Established
- 1999 – ICDL Introduced
- 2003 – ECDL Advanced Introduced
- 2009 – Over 9 Million Candidates
- 2013 – Over 12 Million Candidates
- 2015 – Over 14 million Candidates
Excerpts from http://ecdl.org/about.