The European Year of Skills in the Nordics

NVL supports the European Year of Skills. On this page, you can learn about Nordic educational initiatives that have been launched to help Nordic citizens gain the necessary skills for better job opportunities.

The European Year of Skills ended on April 30, 2024. The initiative had four main objectives: promoting investment in training and upskilling, ensuring that skills match the needs of employers, matching people’s aspirations and skill sets with opportunities on the job market, and attracting people from outside the EU with the skills needed.

Nordic initiatives under the European Year of Skills

Kvinna skriver anteckningar i ett klassrum med andra studenter i bakgrunden.

Finland invests in future competences for all

The European Year of Skills has ended, but the work continues. Kirsi Heinivirta, director of the new Service Centre for Continuous Learning and Employment in Finland, emphasises the importance of new short modular courses and efforts to reach those who face high barriers to education.
-We must create conditions for everyone to develop, says project manager Milma Arola.

Medelålders kvinna och man

The future of the Nordic labour market: a focus on validation and guidance

How has the Nordic Network for Adult Learning – NVL – approached the challenges that were focused on during the European Year of Skills? In the Nordic region, how have we worked to improve matching, promote retraining opportunities and address the skills shortage? We asked the NVL’s validation and guidance network coordinators, Agnetha Kronqvist and Helgi Þorbjörn Svavarsson.

Arbetare som använder en vinkelslip i en metallverkstad, iförd skyddskläder och skyddsglasögon.

Competence cannot be charged during the night -long-term and continuous effort is needed

EU has prioritized skills in the workplace, dedicating an entire year to the “European Year of Skills,” abbreviated as EYS. The year will be a springboard for a skills revolution, it was stated at the closing conference in Brussels in April. Perhaps it is not that simple.

Real people, real skills

Tommy Hauglid

No more sitting by the kitchen table and watching his mates leaving for work in the mornings

– If you get the opportunity to have your prior learning assessed, take it! It was a fantastic way to be assessed and move forward after a long sick leave and the threat of disability. It’s great to be able to go straight into a healthcare programme without first completing two years of upper secondary school, says Tommy Hauglid, 53, from Sørreisa. Now he has full-time job and no longer has to do what he dreaded – sit at the kitchen table and watch his mates leave for work in the mornings.

Wille Bolinder

A second chance – from apps to pallets

After more than 25 years as a designer in the online advertising industry, Wille Bolinder decided to switch to a completely different profession. Now he drives a truck and transports hazardous waste. Despite a 50% cut to his salary, the choice was ultimately an easy one.

The Future Job Market

The future of work – young Nordic citizens share their opinion

NVL has asked Nordic citizens aged 18-22 about their opinion of AI and green transition and how they believe these issues will affect the future job market.

AI is cutting across all labour force

Joakim Wernberg, Research Director at The Swedish Entrepreneurship Forum and Associate Professor in Technology and Society at Lund University discusses how AI is affecting the labor market, its impact on the skills supply, and shares examples of organizations that are successfully implementing AI.

Skills Development in Skellefteå, Sweden

The city of Skellefteå has undergone a big transformation in recent years towards becoming a hub for technology, innovation, and sustainable development.

What were the biggest challenges within skills supply in Skellefteå? What green skills are in special demand? How did the city work strategically with upskilling?

Kristina Sundin Jonsson, Head of Skellefteå Municipality and Simon Dahlgren, Director of Adult Education, Skellefteå Municipality share their experience with working with skills development locally in Skellefteå.