South African telecoms giant MTN is shrugging off the global financial downturn, announcing that the telecoms industry is holding up well as it announced plans to invest R15m in skills development.

The group said the industry is currently on a growth path, adding that there are a number of exciting opportunities, as well as challenges such as attracting employees with the right skills to further develop MTN’s business.

“It is these very skills that we seek, that are in desperate short supply, and the demand for suitably qualified people is high. For this reason, MTN has taken it upon itself to go out and proactively find the graduates who are equipped with these specialist skills,” said MTN’s managing director Tim Lowry.

MTN’s graduate development and bursary programme will be launched in February 2009, as a means of facilitating job creation and developing the key skills graduates would need to enter the telecoms sector.

“This is just not an investment for MTN, as we are confident that our investment in the future of our youth will be for the betterment of South Africa and the continent,” added Lowry.