8.11 Skills and Capacity Development for ICT The Government will ensure proper skills development across the ICT sector. It will develop a Human Resource Development Plan to help the sector to grow. It will collaborate with academic institutions to bridge the gap between academic curricula and what is required in the field. 9. Implementation of the 2019 ICT Policy In order to ensure that the ICT Policy is implemented in an effective and efficient manner, an inclusive, participatory approach, which incorporates input from all stakeholders, will be adopted. Members of the public and private sector will participate in the implementation of the ICT Policy in the same manner in which they informed its development. An ICT Committee will be formed to oversee the implementation of the policy. The MICTTD will play a leadership role in coordinating, the projects described in the Policy and will monitor and regularly report on the achievement of its goals. The Committee will work in close collaboration with other key Ministries including Ministry of Commerce, Industry & Cooperatives (MCIC), Ministry of Education (MOE), Ministry of Health & services (MOH), Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) and OB, the Office of Te Beretitenti. The private sector organisations and other umbrella organisations such as KCCI, and participants in the ICT market will also play a vital role in successfully implementing this policy. Partnerships with regional and international organisations such as the World Bank, ADB, Commonwealth Secretariat, and the International Telecommunication Union will be equally important. The identified projects will be implemented progressively, with progress monitored and regularly reported. 10. Conclusion The ongoing development and improvement of the nation’s IT and telecommunications systems has a vital part to play in growing the national economy and improving the health and well-being of the citizens of Kiribati. The ICT sector has seen many radical changes and improvements since the 2011 National ICT Policy. For example, the number of connected mobiles has increased from around 12,000 to over 51,000 and projects have been established to extend modern Kiribati National ICT Policy 2019 23