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The National Coalition for Digital Skills and Jobs of the Slovak Republic (Digitálna koalícia) is a national initiative established in the context of the Digital Skills & Jobs Coalition initiative of the European Commission with one objective: to improve digital skills in Slovakia. Established in 2017, the Slovak National Coalition has been connected to the Digital Skills & Jobs Platform for a while now - meaning that online readers from all over Europe can find the latest information from the EU Member States on digital skills, jobs, and policies. 

What a win! Highlighted initiatives by the Slovak National Coalition

The Slovak Coalition is behind a variety of initiatives aiming to bridge the digital skills gap and drive forward the digital transformation of the labour force, the economy, education, and citizens in general. Some good practice initiatives, like the IT Fitness Test has crossed borders several times already, expanding first to V4 and then V5 countries (Visegrad). The initiative achieved a considerable impact with more than 200,000 attendees in the first 8 years of its existence. Just in 2021, the IT Fitness Test brought together more than 30,000 participants. See why we talk so much about the IT Fitness Test, and why we consider it's a good practice here

A wide range of other actions focusing on digital skills in Slovakia are equally underway. The Joint Master Study Programme Ukraine is mobility scheme that makes it possible for Ukrainian students and graduates to enrol in public universities in Slovakia, and special attention is given to sectors currently in demand, meaning that this initiative also helps to reduce the shortage of ICT specialists in the country. Slovakia performs around the EU average in the 2022 edition of the EU's Digital Economy and Society Index (DESI) across most indicators, including the ratio on ICT specialists in total employment (4.2% for Slovakia against the EU average of 4.3%). If we put gender balance in the mix, Slovakia still lags behind its EU counterparts according to the Human Capital section in DESI 2022: just 16% of digital experts in Slovakia are women, compared to 19% in EU-27. 

"It's all about the money": funding to digitalise the Slovak education system - a key priority

To address the issue of gender balance and boost the number of digital experts by 2030, investment in education is already being streamlined through a mix of national and EU financing, including funding under the Slovak Recovery and Resilience Plan (RRP). Just from the Slovak RRP, €187 million will go towards actions to digitalise the education system. Measures include financing of digital equipment, especially in the cases of children from low socio-economic backgrounds, actions to enhance digital skills for pupils and teachers, and a curriculum reform orientated towards the creation of a digital ecosystem in Slovak education. At the start of 2023, the Slovak Ministry of Investment, in cooperation with the Digital Coalition – the National Coalition for Digital Skills and Occupations, announced the launch of a new national support scheme, ‘Digital Allowance for Slovak Students (Digital Student)’, which foresees selected groups of pupils receive a one-off contribution of €350 for the purchase of a laptop or tablet with a keyboard.

A blueprint to digital skills in Slovakia

The Slovak Digital Coalition is a key and active part of the Digital Skills & Jobs Community in Europe, bringing the expertise to innovate policymaking so it reflects the latest digital trends and supports the sustainable digital transformation of the Slovak society and economy. There is a lot to learn by members of the Coalition and the Digital Coalition itself, and knowledge-sharing and the exchange of good practices is a priority across countries in Europe, especially in terms of skills. 

To give you the opportunity to do so, we have prepared several translations of strategic documents from Slovak to English. This is due to many reasons - but mostly is rooted in an ambition to make these documents available to the wider European digital skills and jobs community. We believe they contain soundly-researched information, which can help other countries build innovative and forward-looking programs to up- and re-skill people, and hope to share some knowledge of indented objectives, visions of competences in digital skills, and concrete outputs already in various stages of local, regional, national and cross-national implementation. 

All translations can be found on the Digital Coalition website. However, for a better overview, take a look at the list of documents translated below, in line with quality and accessibility standards - and find out all you need to know about the latest state-of-play on digital in Slovakia. 

EU Digital Competence Frameworks - now available with local context in Slovak 

The following documents have been translated from English into Slovak. 

Slovak strategies and action plans to bridge the digital skills gap for one and all

Other key strategic documents with the potential to impact the national snapshot of digital skills

Want to know more? 

Find the latest information on the website of the Slovak Digital Coalition - from news to strategic documents and key updates. But before you head there, take a look at the snapshot of what is currently going on with digital skills on the ground. Looking for funding? We can help. Here is a list of funding opportunities meant to support the development of digital skills across Slovakia's regions. 

 

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News details

Digital technology / specialisation
Digital skill level
Geographic scope - Country
Austria
Belgium
Bulgaria
Cyprus
Geographical sphere
National initiative