After the European Year of Skills’ closure, digital skills will remain at the forefront of the EU’s political priorities over the next years. The European Commission President has announced the intention to build a Union of Skills and proposed an Executive Vice-President with a dedicated portfolio on People, Skills and Preparedness. This makes investing in enhancing skills development in the EU workforce an even higher political priority.

In line with the aim of the Union of Skills, DIGITAL SME has published an evidence-based blueprint, that relies on a comprehensive research methodology, including a survey of nearly 12,000 SMEs across eight European countries. The publication emphasises the leadership of European digital SMEs in driving upskilling and reskilling efforts and provides a set of six policy recommendations towards the creation of a Union of Skills.

The White Paper launch event marked the opportunity for SMEs that contributed to the publication to present their best practices in upskilling and reskilling to MEPs and EU Commission representatives, laying the foundations for strategic cooperation in the 2024-2029 mandate.

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