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speakers at the summit

On 13 June 2023, the Digital Skills Summit took place in the Orangerie, where leading experts, together with the Digital and Finance Ministers Brunner and Secretary of State Tursky, looked at the digital future. It focused on the first results of the Digital Skills Offensive (DKO), launched in February 2030. The event led Barbara Fleißner.

Raising skills – knowing how

The Digital Skills Offensive (DKO) was launched after a comprehensive dialogue process with over 500 experts and stakeholders from 80 institutions. Its aim is to ensure that all Austrians have basic digital skills by 2023. The initiative also aims to increase the share of IT professionals, especially women, and to introduce a national reference framework. Some 350 actions and initiatives have already been identified, clustered and pooled. The Digital Austria Pact has been signed by all Länder.

Strategically, the DKO focuses on eight priorities to increase digital skills in an offensive manner. A key aspect is the introduction of a common competence framework for digital skills. In addition, low-threshold training will be provided across the board in youth and elderly institutions, municipalities and associations. Training for coaches is also planned to ensure a high-quality transfer of skills. Examples of good practice should be made visible and scaled up and the public sector should set an example in the implementation of the skills model. 

A panel discussion with prominent guests took place at the Digital Skills Summit. The educational psychologist Christiane Spiel praised the DKO as a real implementation programme and stressed the importance of lifelong learning as a key competence. Jakob Calice (OEAD) presented the DKO secretariat as an operational implementation unit and announced the organisation of 3.500 low threshold workshops. According to EU Ambassador Martin Selmayr, there is an urgent need for Europe to act as a player in the digital world and not just as referees – and digital skills are a prerequisite for this. 

Artificial intelligence and the future

Mic Hirschbrich’s own keynote was dedicated to Artificial Intelligence. The use of auxiliary AI is already very widespread, but only in five to seven years will AI be so well trained that a substitution of professions can be expected – according to the expert. It was important now to use this time to develop skills in a targeted way.

"Overall, the Digital Skills Summit 2023 showed the booming potential of current digital developments, as well as the high urgency to acquire digital skills. According to the Consensus, Europe’s competitiveness and prosperity is directly dependent on the diffusion of digital skills among the population. The Digital Skills Offensive addresses the challenges ahead and, through its multi-stakeholder approach, ensures that the initiative takes a wide range of perspectives. The DKO was launched in February 2023 and now “we have really managed to bring this digital strategy to the world in a record time” - said Secretary of State Florian Tursky.

News details

Digital technology / specialisation
Digital skill level
Geographic scope - Country
Austria
Geographical sphere
International initiative