OREANDA-NEWS. NEC Corporation announced that NEC Australia, a wholly owned subsidiary and leading technology solutions and services provider, has secured a \\$34.6 million contract with the Northern Territory Government to support the Department of Education's IT and communications systems over the next five years.

In this extended partnership, NEC Australia will deliver a wide-range of IT and communications services that will lower costs for the department, largely through the introduction of leading edge IT toolsets, and provide a platform to drive innovation and efficiencies in information and communication technology (ICT) service delivery.

NEC Australia will be the primary ICT enabler for the department's service desk and infrastructure which covers the Department of Education and all Northern Territory schools. The schools and the department have locations distributed across the Territory, with a large percentage of the schools in remote areas, requiring servicing by airplane. The contract also includes the delivery of technology architecture and integration services, projects, service desk and technology management tools, on-site support, and IP telephony and communication systems management.

"NEC Australia has earned a reputation for taking a highly collaborative approach to ICT service delivery that helps customers achieve their goals. We've worked side by side with the department to enable better services through improved ICT capabilities and the Northern Territory Government has recognised and rewarded our unique approach in this new partnership. We're looking forward to supporting the department through its next stage of planned improvements," said Alan Hyde, managing director, NEC Australia.

The contract builds on NEC Australia's position as the leading provider of ICT services to the Northern Territory Government and comes with a renewed commitment by NEC Australia to give back to the local community. NEC has cooperated with local businesses, such as Vertical Technology Group Pty Ltd., to create a strong team that the Northern Territory Government can rely on to deliver this work across the Northern Territory.

NEC Australia is the leading ICT employer in the Northern Territory and will continue its support for the Territory's Structured Work Place initiative, a traineeship program coordinated by the Department of Education that helps develop relevant, sought-after skills within the community.

NEC Australia has supported the programme since 2007 with its own School-Based Apprenticeship and Indigenous Traineeship programme, which provides training and real-world experience for students with a passion for IT.

"Our traineeship programme receives a large number of requests for Structured Work Placements through the Department of Education initiative. The real success of the partnership programmes is that it has led to placements across Northern Territory and with NEC," said NEC Australia's Northern Territory Manager, Trevor Oliver.

The NEC programme offers a unique path towards future job opportunities in the ICT sector, and welcomes trainee participants to apply for placements with both NEC Australia and its regional partners.