Skills for Competitiveness: how to address skills shortages in Europe’s regions?

Skills for Competitiveness: how to address skills shortages in Europe’s regions?

On 23 March 2026, ERRIN's Science and Education for Society Working Group organised a meeting to explore skills shortages in European regions and the approaches ERRIN’s member regions have chosen to mitigate these challenges. This meeting constitutes a part of the network’s ongoing effort to secure the place of regions in the EU’s emergent initiatives within skills and competitiveness.

The first presentation, given by Federica Garbiglia from the Emilia-Romagna region, highlighted the structural shortage of highly specialised technical and digital profiles in AI and data science, automation and mechatronics, cybersecurity, energy transition technologies and advanced materials. She emphasised the role of legislative initiatives like the Regional law for Talent attraction, permanence and valorisation of Talent in Emilia Romagna. Additionally, it highlighted the coordination of existing instruments and the importance of making information available to potential talent in order to reduce structural skills shortages.

This presentation was followed by Runa Monstad from the Stavanger region, whose presentation emphasised the lack of qualified workers, particularly in the emerging green industries and energy, and how having the skills sector represented in decision-making forums can help shape policy that helps address these shortages.

Campus Kongsvinger from the Oslo region, represented by Vegard Herlyng and Anders Øverby, presented the challenges faced by border regions ln particular, emphasising demographic developments such as an aging population, brain drain and deindustrialisation and presented their ecosystem approach to introducing those currently outside the workforce into critical sectors through intensive training programmes, like health care, for instance.

Finally, the municipality of Emmen represented by Petra Wallenaar and the Cross-border institute Rijnland, by Cigdem Zantingh-Akcelik, presented the MOVE certificate, also centered around cross-border challenges. The MOVE certificate is an ecosystem-based approach to training workers and providing qualifications recognised on both sides of the border, underlining that the challenges faced by European regions are in many cases quite similar – and that the solutions needed to build a true '360 degree job market' can be shared and improved upon.

To provide a European perspective and to gather the threads, Steven Engels, head of unit in the Professional Qualifications and Skills for Competitiveness unit at the European Commission, presented the current state of play as well as emergent EU initiatives to address skills shortages and mismatches, including the Pact for Skills, skills partnerships and some glimpses into the proposed 2028-2034 MFF with relevance to the skills agenda.

ERRIN members can download the attached event presentations. Please note you need to be logged in to do so. 

The skills conversation with ERRIN members will continue on

  • Wednesday 13 May (10:30-12:00) with an online ERRIN Talk on Skills for Resilience, targeting stakeholders located at the heart of ERRIN member regions. 
  • Thursday 25 June 2026, with the next in-person meeting of the SEFS Working Group on skills in the next MFF and the upcoming Erasmus+, ECF and the NRPPs. 

Members who are interested in contributing to the forthcoming sessions can get in touch with astrid.hannes@errin.eu. Credits for the article go to Joakim P. Berg, co-leader of the SEFS Working Group. 

Science & Education for Society Working Group is part of the Strategic Cluster, together with Smart Specialisation WG and Policy WG. The Working Group addresses topics related to the concept of place-based universities and engagement with society and citizens, while also working on the role of education (both VET and Higher Education) in the Research and Innovation Smart Specialisation Strategies (RIS3), as well as education and skills for research and innovation. The Working Group facilitates information sharing and knowledge development and aims to strengthen existing and build new relationships with the EU institutions. Facilitating project development is also part of the Working Group's scope. For this purpose, the Working Group assesses the interest of the membership for specific calls under Erasmus+ and supports the members in the most efficient way in building consortia, primarily with the ERRIN Project Development Tool.