 iopp licenses online fundamentals of packaging technology course to kenya region corporate sponsors to provide support ipackima spa among first to contributenaperville, il, february, 2013 &ndash the institute of packaging professionalsu.s. has signed an agreement with the institute of packaging professionalskenya to license its new fundamentals of packaging technology online course and make the comprehensive packaging training program available to iopp members in kenya, and other countries in the region. program funding will begin immediately and will be provided by corporate sponsors to offset costs for participating kenyan students. among the first sponsors to contribute will be ipackima spa. this funding will cover the program costs for the first 10 student enrollments. &ldquowe are proud to participate in this vital program,&rdquo says guido corbella, ceo of ipackima spa. &ldquoby helping to educate the next generation of packaging professionals, ipackima is honored to support those who will be extending their expertise through the development of advanced packaging technologies that will ensure regional food is kept healthy, safe and plentiful.&rdquofundamentals of packaging technology training in kenya will begin immediately.&ldquothis is an important development for iopp, and the packaging industry, as our online training course now makes it possible for us to bring muchneeded packaging training to nations where packaging, as an industry, is still in its infancy,&rdquo says patrick farrey, iopp executive director. &ldquowhile ioppu.s. is offering this training at a very low cost, it is still considered expensive by kenya standards.&rdquofarrey adds, &ldquowe are grateful for the sponsor support because it will enable iopp to help get the kenyan packaging community uptospeed on packaging dynamics, when it otherwise may not have been possible. as those who work in packaging in kenya and other nations expand on their packaging knowledge and implement it in their companies, new opportunities will eventually open up for the global packaging industry.&rdquo joseph nyongesa, ioppkenya president, says the intent is to market the program first in kenya and eventually roll it out to neighboring countries. &ldquopackaging has been identified as one of the priority areas that need to be addressed in order to strengthen the competitiveness of smes in kenya and africa in general,&rdquo says nyongesa. &ldquoinadequate packaging leads to considerable waste in the agricultural supply chain, compounding the major problem of food insecurity. packaging will become the ambassador of the country&rsquos products because it will be seen before the product and the country. the collaboration with ioppu.s. will provide the necessary knowledge framework on packaging to reach the country&rsquos vision.&rsquo&rsquo ioppkenya will offer online packaging education to its local members using iopp&rsquos existing elearning platform. the online course, available at www.iopp.orgelearning, consists of 41 downloadable, prerecorded modules and 27 hours of learning on all the major areas of packaging. the online course can lead to the certified packaging professional cpp designation through the institute.additional program support is also coming from the staples foundation. companies interested in supporting the sponsorship program should inquire at info@iopp.org. 
