LinkedIn, the world’s largest professional network, has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Kerala Development and Innovation Strategy Council (K-DISC) and the Kerala ICT Academy (ICTAK) as part of the Connect Career to Campus (CCC) campaign under the Kerala Knowledge Economy Mission (KKEM) initiative.

According to the Kerala state government, the partnership aims to enhance the employability skills of Kerala youth and increase relevant jobs for them using LinkedIn talent insights and learning tools.

As part of the inauguration of the CCC, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, Labour and General Education Minister V Sivankutty, Higher Education Minister R Bindu, LSGD M V Govindan, and MLA Kadakampally Surendran exchanged memorandums of understanding on Thursday.

Through the partnership, students will have access to different LinkedIn products and services, the state government said in a release.

“This will include LinkedIn Insights to help understand the job market and recruiting trends, LinkedIn Learning courses curated to support upskilling, and LinkedIn Jobs to provide career opportunities to eligible young people. LinkedIn will also guide students in creating their Professional online branding,” the release said.

Speaking of the partnership, K-DISC Executive Vice President Dr K M Abraham said it would ensure that the most modern and up-to-date courses relevant to the industry will flow to all registered participants of the Kerala Knowledge Economy Mission.

According to Ruchee Anand, senior director of talent and learning solutions at LinkedIn, today’s labour market offers a plethora of new digital skills and career paths, but many young professionals still don’t have enough opportunities or resources to find the right job opportunities.

K-DISC is a strategic think tank and advisory body established by the Kerala government. ICTAK is a social enterprise created as a public-private partnership (PPP) to teach ICT skills to young people in Kerala. It is supported by the government of India and in collaboration with the government of Kerala and the IT industry.

The CCC campaign aims to promote the “Right job@Right time” philosophy by raising awareness of emerging Industry 4.0 jobs, global labour market changes, and the need for skills that encourage and guide students to shape meaningful careers.

It also intends to connect with all educational institutions through the Digital Workforce Management System (DWMS) platform to ensure that aspirants receive treatment such as skills, grooming, and suitable career prospects. KKEM is a digital platform-based strategic initiative launched by the Kerala government to transform the country into a knowledge economy.

The state government said the DWMS aims to employ more than 20 lakh people over the next five years, enabling the state to achieve a major economic transformation and support its transition to a knowledge society.