Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft, the East Africa Community and Cognizant are among more than 25 organisations from around the globe that will serve as founding contributors to the AI Skills Coalition, an initiative of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) to bridge the global AI skills gap and ensure equal worldwide access to artificial intelligence (AI) training. The AI for Good initiative led by ITU announced the list of coalition members during the World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting in Davos, the United Nations agency announced on January 20, 2025.
The AI Skills Coalition will serve as an online platform for AI education and capacity building by offering free resources, including self-paced courses, webinars, and workshops, designed to equip underserved communities—especially women, youth, and persons with disabilities—with the skills needed to participate in the AI-driven future. The initiative also targets the underrepresentation of these groups in the development of AI products and services, according to the official release.
“Let’s make sure everyone has a chance to learn the skills they need to benefit from the AI revolution,” said ITU Secretary-General Doreen Bogdan-Martin. “Our new AI Skills Coalition is aiming to train thousands of people this year, especially those living in regions of the world just getting started on their AI journey, as part of our commitment to ensure that all communities can fully participate in our shared digital future.”
“Generative AI is rapidly transforming the workforce, with LinkedIn data showing a 142 times global increase in professionals adding AI aptitude skills in just one year,” said Kate Behncken, Global Head of Microsoft Philanthropies. “Recognising this growing demand, we are proud to work with the ITU AI Skills Coalition to provide access to AI skills training, certifications, and capacity-building for policymakers, IT professionals, and organisational leaders.”
Collaborations with UNDP
An estimated 94 percent of global business leaders highlighted artificial intelligence as critical for the success of their organisations in research cited in the recent AI for Good Impact Report published by ITU and Deloitte. However, insufficient technical skills, the need for extensive upskilling and reskilling, as well as the need to build trust in new technologies are among key barriers to broader AI adoption globally, ITU said.
As part of the initiative, ITU will work with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to leverage UNDP’s presence in over 170 countries and territories to deliver AI capacity development directly to partner countries.
“Capacity development is the number one ask from the developing countries that we work in,” said Achim Steiner, Administrator of UNDP. “As part of this Coalition, we will work with our partners to deliver crucial foundational AI training, so that policy-makers and national governments can responsibly harness AI to achieve sustainable development.”
Founding organisations are contributing training materials, financial resources and outreach support to build a new training platform developed by ITU, which is set to launch in March 2025.
The AI Skills Coalition platform will include a comprehensive training portfolio and a customisable digital library of AI material. The site will also offer self-paced courses, webinars, access to in-person workshops, and hybrid programs tailored to diverse learning needs.
ITU said the online resources – to be contributed by private sector partners, academia and United Nations agencies – will be available for free. Advanced certifications will be available at affordable rates.
Specialised training in AI governance and policymaking will also be developed to meet the needs of developing countries and least-developed countries (LDCs).
The ITU AI Skills Coalition Founding Contributors include: AI Academy Asia, AI Commons, AI Governance Limited, Altruistic, Amazon Web Services (AWS), Black Women in AI, Breakthrough, CIT Code Academy, Coding and more, Cognizant, East African Community, equitably.ai, Exponential Coaching International, FAIR Forward, Frontline Associates, Geneva Human Rights Platform, JA Worldwide, Lady Justice, Microsoft, OpenUK, SheAI, Swiss Sustainable Finance, Tony Blair Institute for Global Change, UNDP, UNITAR, USTTI, and Youth for Privacy.
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