Background information
Funding opportunities for upskilling and reskilling to support the digital competences of individuals and organizations are available in form of loans, grants and financial instruments. For the period 2021 – 2026 most of the activities in digital transformation are financed through Recovery and Resilience facility but also as activities in Horizon, Erasmus+, ESIF and EEA grant schemes. You may find more on the page of Belgian National Digital Skills and Jobs Coalition.
Recovery and resilience facility
The digital transition is supported by investments in the digitalisation of the public administration, in skills and digital inclusion, in cyber security, and in connectivity as part of Belgium’s recovery and resilience plan. It will invest €480 million in education for a more inclusive and future-proof education system across all communities, with pupils and students possessing digital and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Maths) skills and access to digital tools and technology. In addition, the plan will invest €585 million in the digital transformation of the public administration, justice system, and health care system to improve access for citizens and businesses, as well as a set of reforms that will contribute to the deployment of 5G and ultrafast connectivity infrastructure, such as fibre.
With the support of the RRF, Flanders set up local ‘Digibanks’ to reduce the risk of digital exclusion among vulnerable groups, providing equal access to digital technology, strengthening their personal and technical digital skills, through training and knowledge sharing, ensuring improvement of digital access to essential services. The Digibank employees offer participants solutions for various online problems such as providing guidance on the use of government services, compile a CV, take a course on computer or learning basic digital skills. The total budget for Digibanks is EUR 50 million.
The Learning account reform grants an individual right to five training days per year to each employee in Belgium; introduces tax advantages for companies to incentivise them to provide more training hours to their employees; will improve collaboration between the National Employment Office and the employment services in the regions. This reform will contribute to the training and reintegration into the job market of around 25,000 unemployed workers, job seekers, students and workers.
In Flanders, the rollout of the digital leap programme (Digisprong) has begun in 2021, and continues till 2025 supported by RRF funds with total budget of € 375 million. Primary and secondary schools digital transformation is supported by acquiring ICT infrastructure, devices for students and teachers
National Funding
Digital Belgium Skills Fund (DBSF) focuses on developing and improving the digital skills of socially vulnerable children, adolescents, and young adults since 2016. They funded 27 projects in 2021 and 47 in 2022. Call for 2023 is opened till the end of October with particular attention to innovative projects with a potential field of leadership (e.g. cybersecurity, database management, online training, education in new technologies, etc.) and aiming for excellence, as well as to self-certifying.
Different funding options are also available on the Digital Skills and Jobs platform, you may find a listing for Belgium on this link.