Technology giant Apple selected economically-bereft Naples for its very first technology academy which was opened last Wednesday. It is a skill school for software developers.
Its investment in the southern Italian city should help lift the struggling local economy and entice more foreign investment while enhancing opportunities for younger people from a host of nations to develop both technology and leadership skills.
Naples is Italy’s third largest city after Rome and Milan as well as one of the world’s oldest inhabited cities. Its economy, however, does not reflect that glory.
The joint project with the Federico II University in Naples, one of the oldest in the world, is reported to be the first of its kind. A nine-month course will train students in app and software development.
Out of more than 4,000 applicants, the first 100 started the free courses on Thursday. Many hail from Italy, including the south, while others have arrived from the Netherlands, Lithuania and Madagascar.
Armed with the latest iPhones and iPads, the students will learn to write code and launch apps on Apple technology by the end of the year.
"From here the economy can be jump-started," said Naples mayor Luigi De Magistris. The students now "can finally not only study here but choose to stay, rather than leave the city to find jobs."
The scourge of high unemployment has been little alleviated for Italy’s young people, most particularly for those living in the south of the country. A 35-year average of nearly 30% had rocketed to virtually 40% over this last summer.
And on the very day that the Academy opened its doors, a report showed that 40,000 young Italians had left the country to find jobs abroad. Italy’s President Sergio Mattarella said the trend is "a haemorrhage of talent and skills”.
The rector of the university said that hopes were high that the Academy’s graduates would find jobs in local companies or create their own start-ups in Naples.
