ANECA participates in the First Version of the European Engineering Skills Strategy, published by ENGINEERS EUROPE

Brussels, 09/10/2024. ENGINEERS EUROPE, the European Organisation of Professional Engineers, representing 6 million engineers from 33 countries, recently presented the first version of the European Engineering Skills Strategy. This research work - which aims to fill the skills gap in the engineering sector in Europe - is one of the main objectives of the "Engineers for Europe (E4E)" project in which ANECA participates as responsible for the control, monitoring and evaluation of the quality assurance of the project, funded by the European Commission within the framework of the Erasmus+ programme. The publication has been prepared with the contributions of 61 experts representing 27 institutions, universities and professional organisations from 13 EU countries.

Through extensive primary and secondary research, including two Europe-wide surveys targeting the European engineering community resulting in 7,757 responses, the strategy highlights the critical gap between supply and demand for engineering skills. The 62-page document not only provides analysis but also clear recommendations for higher education institutions, professional organisations, industry leaders and policy makers to foster a workforce prepared to meet the future demands of the engineering sector. In particular, it emphasises the need for holistic skills development by integrating technical and non-technical skills in engineering education and addresses the challenges of the green and digital transition. In addition, it includes 15 good practice examples highlighting recent successful initiatives in Europe to close the skills gap.

The European Engineering Skills Council, established as an integral part of the E4E project, will play a key role in the implementation of the strategy and ensure ongoing collaboration between stakeholders. It will become an integral part and body of ENGINEERS EUROPE. Request for stakeholder feedback: ENGINEERS EUROPE, as the leader of the E4E project, invites all stakeholders to review and provide feedback on this first draft of the document. Comments and suggestions will help finalise the strategy by August 2025. Comments can be submitted and are welcomed at e4e@engineerseurope.com.

More information on the E4E project on the website: https://www.engineers4europe.eu