Cisco Systems is ploughing 1 million into the UK to help ease the skills shortage in the networking industry. The Cisco Network Academy programme, which was launched formally today by Cisco CEO John Chambers, is part of a global effort by Cisco to raise skill levels in IT. In particular, he said he hoped the money would educate and train more people to meet future networking needs. Five regional academies have already been established in the UK as part of the programme. The money will be used develop curricula, provide training and pay for the necessary hardware and software needed to equip schools and colleges. The initiative is part of Cisco's European-wide education programme. Worldwide, there are almost 1,000 Cisco Networking Academies which have been developed specifically to prepare people for a career in networking. According to Datamonitor Research, Networking is currently the fastest growing sector in the IT industry and is forecast to become a £5 billion market in the UK by 2001. ®