Tech roundup: ICT sector creating jobs

This week: ICT sector job openings grow 300 percent in Q1 2021. With metal produced in Brazil, vanadium company from Canada has ambitious goals for the clean energy market. Brazilian researcher wins prize for project aiming to speed up Covid-19 prognosis.

ICT sector grows in Brazil, despite the pandemic

Brazil’s information and communication technology (ICT) sector is seeing significant growth, with 52,743 new jobs opened in the first three months of this year — 300 percent more than the same period in 2020 — according to a report conducted by the Brazilian Association of Information and Communication Technology Companies (Brasscom).  

Why it matters. More job openings are essential during the pandemic, as Brazil faces record levels of unemployment. According to the most recent data from the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics, 14.7 percent of the country’s workforce were out of a job in the first quarter of 2021. 

Online boom. In response to coronavirus restrictions, several companies had to change their business practices, adopting remote work, improving their online security, and diving into new areas such as e-commerce. As such, it is easy to see why the demand for information and communication technology professionals is on the rise.

• According to the “2020 Sector Report,” around 1.6 million Brazilians were employed in ICT jobs last year, 59,153 more than at the end of 2019.
• Only March, April, and May of 2020 saw negative numbers in relation to ICT job creation, coming at the very beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic and during the first social isolation measures.
• The report showed that the sector enjoys revenue of BRL 505.2 billion (USD 99.6 billion), making up 6.8 percent of Brazil’s GDP.

Still a long way to go. Even with all this growth, the sector still has plenty of room to progress. ICT companies face a large staff deficit and would need to employ an average of 70,000 professionals per...