Europe is experiencing an information technology (IT) skills shortage and in response the European Commission is launching a digital initiative worth one million Euros. A coalition has recently been launched with the mandate of tackling issues related to the lack of digital experts and skilled computer engineers. There are not enough IT experts in the continent today and this has been an issue in the past few years. But, now that the economic crisis shows no sign of resolution just yet, this and other factors are contributing to a worst-case-scenario situation. The competitiveness of the European Union (EU) in the digital technology niche is currently threatened.
Digital jobs are increasing in Europe, and it is currently reportedly at 100,000 per year. Despite the high demand, there are not enough IT graduates in the EU to fill the necessary positions. This issue is now being put at the forefront and concrete steps are being made to resolve it.
The Coalition
A coalition has been formed and has been given a budget of one million Euros in order to tackle the shortage as well as promote IT career opportunities. This move is put forth so that Europe can catch up with the rest of the world. The coalition was launched by Jose Manuel Barroso, chair of the European Commission. The main goal of this coalition is to tackle the shortage in technological skills. There is a particular need for skilled computer engineers at this time.
IT vacancies in the European continent
Amidst high rates of unemployment (26 million unemployed), there are many IT positions that remain vacant reportedly in the hundreds of thousands. The issue was put forward during the CeBit tech trade fair held recently in Hannover, Germany. Ms. Neelie Kroes, the European Commission Digital Commissioner announced the launching of the grand coalition that is tasked to resolve the issue as soon as possible.
According to the European Commission, there is an estimated 900,000 vacancies by the year 2015 for positions related to information technology expertise. It is not an option now to just wait and see. Google has joined in the campaign and has launched programs that are specifically targeting students. The other companies involved in the initiative are Telefonica and Cisco.
Threat to growth and advancement
The growth prospects of the European Union are being threatened by the IT shortages. As a matter of fact, the current situation is costing the EU billions of Euros which is making the current economic crisis even worse. The burgeoning digital skills crisis is adding to the already burdened EU economy, and until the gap if filled this problem will persist and the economic turmoil assailing the continent could even get worse.
Concrete steps
One of the ways by which the Commission seeks to improve the situation is by simplifying the certification requirements that IT graduates need to present. This is to facilitate employment across many different IT positions. The Commission plans to implement a universal procedure that would apply to the citizens of any country in the European Union.
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