EU prepares defense “staff” - Aims to train 600,000 workers to combat skills shortage
The European Union says that around 600,000 people will be trained or retrained for the defense industry by 2030, as the sector struggles to recruit at the pace needed to meet rearmament demands.
The training plan is part of several measures presented by the European Commission as part of the Defence Industrial Transformation plan. It also includes a Talent Platform to support trainees in small and medium-sized defence companies.
“We need to secure the capabilities we need for the military,” a Commission official said on condition of anonymity. “This is becoming a major bottleneck, as all defence players are rushing to produce increasingly innovative products and the lack of capabilities has created strong competition within the industry.”
The European Union is rushing to rearm, largely with European-made equipment, before the end of the decade, when it is estimated that Russia could be capable of attacking another European country. But one of the main problems remains the lack of qualified labor.
After a multi-year decline, the European defense industry job market began to grow again in 2022, following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. In 2023, the EU defense industry generated around 581,000 jobs. Data from the European Defense Agency published this year showed that, although job demands have decreased from their peak in late 2022, they remain 41% above 2021 levels.
However, the Commission’s latest plan warns that the workforce and skills gap “threatens the operational capabilities of the sector and consequently affects the EU’s security.” To close the gap, the bloc wants to create a Skills Guarantee program to help “automotive workers at risk of unemployment move to strategic growth sectors such as defense,” the document says.
The measures aim to “skill around 12% of the existing defence and space workforce each year and retrain 600,000 people for the defence industry by 2030.” The Commission also wants to create a Defence Industry Talent Platform to support apprenticeships through a voucher system. The pilot scheme foresees the award of 300 vouchers to students.
What are the flood protection projects? - 15 of them are ongoing, the budget finances the rehabilitation of 10 km of embankments
Albania is facing bad weather and intense rainfall, with consequences in flooding of agricultural lands and economic damage for Albanian families. But what......
87 million lek for the new Kashar-Kamëz electricity network - OSSH: Aiming to increase the quality of supply
SSH Tirana has announced the opening of the competition for the construction of two new feeders from the Kashar 110/20 kV substation and the reconstruction......
APD: 10-month performance of the Port of Durres, trade volumes increase by 7.2%
The Port of Durres has continued its positive performance trend during the first ten months of 2025, confirming its consolidated role in maritime transport......
“Montenegro must strengthen economic stability” - IMF warns of major fiscal risks, calls for reforms
The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) projects real GDP growth of 3.2% in 2025. Average inflation is expected to remain high, around......
The US Dollar Recovers - What Happened to Other Currencies Today?
The US dollar has recorded a recovery in value since yesterday, gaining points this morning as it was bought today at 83.4 lek and sold at 84.4 lek according......
"European banks, be ready for major shocks" - ECB warns of the risk of potential crises in the coming years
The European Central Bank (ECB) said on Wednesday that eurozone banks should prepare for unpredictable shocks that could have far-reaching consequences for......
Greek family wealth exceeds 1 trillion euros - Post-crisis recovery brings additional 200 billion euros
Household wealth in Greece has seen a remarkable recovery since 2022, with assets recovering much of the losses incurred during the decade-long economic......
Rich countries are withdrawing from global development - Study: Financial aid is being reduced. In focus, strengthening defense
Many of the world's richest countries, including the United States and Japan, are backing away from their commitments to global development, according to a......
