The Regional Secretary for Tourism and Transport stated in Ponta Delgada that the creation of Microsoft Academies in the Azores is an opportunity for young people to acquire knowledge on information technology. This will contribute to the excellence of qualification, which is adequate and adjusted to the reality of emerging labour markets and, therefore, guarantee higher levels of employability.
 
"Microsoft Academies will open up windows to specialised knowledge tailored to the needs of organisations and embodied in three areas that are in line with UNESCO tools within 21st century tools: the area of productivity, the area of computer science and the area of infrastructure of information technology," said Vítor Fraga. The government official spoke at the signing ceremony of a protocol between the Government of the Azores and Microsoft Portugal.
 
This partnership with Microsoft is also based on the development of start-ups and the promotion of the Azores destination in Microsoft's digital channels.
 
"Today, the Government of the Azores builds consolidates the foundation of its political strategy towards economic growth and social cohesion, the classification of resources and the excellence of the Azores as a tourist destination," said the Regional Secretary.
 
In the area of entrepreneurship, the Region will join the BizSpark programme, which will provide a breakthrough "towards the modernisation of economy, innovation and sustainable development of companies as well as to the creation of creative and innovative businesses, thus ensuring synergies and partnerships that put them in an effectively competitive level on a global scale," said the government official.
 
This protocol will further strengthen the presence of the Region in world tourism markets by promoting the destination in digital media, which is becoming increasingly important in the efforts to promote the Azores.
 
"Once again, the Azores strengthen their presence in world tourism markets by ensuring their presence in digital channels, such as the well-known Skype or MSN, allowing the access of a considerable number of visitors and online users," Vítor Fraga said, highlighting the efforts made in the differentiated promotion of the Region.
 
"The path towards the strengthening of this goal and the maximisation of its impact on our economy, we believe that we should increasingly invest in digital promotion," the Regional Secretary stressed, noting that, for most tourists, the decision to visit a destination is made based on the information provided consulted on the Internet.
 
The protocol signed today will also lead to the creation of the Azores channel on MSN.pt, which will be available in the coming days and is expected to reach 48 million annual pageviews. This measure reinforces the efforts of differentiated promotion of the Azores in the increasingly important digital market.
 
"We can establish 48 million contacts in a convenient and effective way, providing our potential visitors with the necessary information and, thus, enhance the sales of the destination, either via digital channels or via traditional channels," said the Regional Secretary.
 
"More Azores on the web is synonymous with fostering the creation of added value for our economy. Therefore, we believe that the association with a great company like Microsoft will position us in a high value level," said the government official.
 
Vítor Fraga also stressed that the role of the Government in this procedure is to ensure that the creation of conditions for promoting partnerships. Through them, students, tour agents and companies in general can "move and grow comfortably in the certainty that their work and investment will be recognised in the medium-terms, either through the generation of value and wealth or through their promotion in the labour market."
 
"Our will, our ambition and our determination have placed our human resources in a level of qualification that allowed them to be acknowledged for their expertise," said the Regional Secretary, who invited all Azoreans to seize these new tools.