SANTIAGO, Chile and TORONTO, Jan. 16, 2020 /CNW/ - Scotiabank, a leading bank in the Americas, announced today a five-year academic partnership with Federico Santa Maria University in Santiago, Chile to create the Scotiabank Centre for Digital Transformation. As part of this academic partnership, Scotiabank will invest USD$1,250,000 over five years benefitting an estimated 6,000 students participating in the program.

The focus of the academic partnership is to enhance research and development in digital innovation and encourage the participation of women in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). According to a study by the Ministry of Women and Gender Equity in 2018, only one in four females in Chile were enrolled in a STEM academic program and only 5% of the STEM workforce is comprised of women. The Scotiabank Centre for Digital Transformation will also establish a wide variety of hands-on applied initiatives such as hackathons, capstone projects and student internships in the fields of cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, and data analytics. This investment will also support the creation of new events and digital courses which will ensure students are able to complement their theoretical learning with an applied experience.

"We are very proud of our academic partnership with Federico Santa María University, one of the most recognized academic institutions in the field of engineering and technological sciences in the country and across the Pacific Alliance. We look forward to continue advancing digital innovations in the fields of cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, and data analytics and broaden the participation of women in the important fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics in Chile," said Ignacio (Nacho) Deschamps, Group Head, International Banking & Digital Transformation at Scotiabank.

"This will be our first formal collaboration with a Bank regarding Digital Transformation. This partnership represents an outstanding opportunity for our University to undertake research, develop applied learning programs relevant to the financial sector, and foster a more robust collaboration within the industry", said Darcy Fuenzalida, Director of Federico Santa María University.

Carlos Castro, Director of Informatics Department at Federico Santa María University further added, "For our University, this academic partnership is a great opportunity to enhance our participation in relevant areas that we have been working on for many years. There is no doubt that this donation will strongly impact our activities carried out in Valparaiso and Santiago and we will do our best to make the optimal use of these resources for both academic and social benefits."

Scotiabank's investment in academic institutions aims to enhance, amplify and highlight the impact of digital technologies in society. The Bank engages the best and brightest minds to ensure that they acquire the skills necessary to support their success in the digital economy. As part of this global initiative, Scotiabank has established partnerships with top tier academic institutions from around the world such as Queen's University, Western University, University of Waterloo, University of Toronto, University of Alberta, and University of British Columbia in Canada and Tec de Monterrey and Universidad del Pacífico in the Pacific Alliance countries.

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SOURCE Scotiabank