and medium-sized businesses should invest more in IT literacy because this will save costs in the long-term and also contribute to profits and greater efficiency. This is the call being made by the International Computer Driving License Organization in the Kingdom (ICDL Saudi Arabia). The ICDL concept is a global computer literacy initiative developed to raise the level of knowledge about IT and increase the level of competence in using personal computers and common computer applications. The organization offers certificate courses in IT. The organization referred to an Italian study on “the cost of illiteracy” which showed that the ICDL Certificate contributes, on average, to total revenues of SR14,000 per capita annually. It also raised efficiency by 47 percent. Dr. Sulaiman Al-Dhal'an, Consultant of ICDL Saudi Arabia, expects small and medium enterprises to benefit greatly from the ICDL Certificate because it can provide all the basic skills needed by employees. This would contribute to improved work performance. The ICDL Certificate provides an objective evaluation of an employees' skill and proficiency. ICDL Saudi Arabia has developed a strategy for improving digital literacy, to complement the large investments by the government in information and communications technology (ICT). ICDL Saudi Arabia said the Kingdom is currently the biggest regional investor in ICT, at $20 billion a year. The ICDL program endorsed by the Ministry of Education, universities and government organizations, is accredited by more than 168 countries, and is available in more than 40 languages.
