The EU Pact for Skills: Regional Skills Partnership for Sustainable Blue Economy in EUSAIR Region

The European Union’s Pact for Skills initiative brings together all types and sizes of businesses, from EU umbrella organisations, social partners, vocational and education training providers, to regional / municipal authorities, to speak with a unified voice in supporting specific commitments to reskilling and upskilling the European workforce in an effort to meet the objectives of the twin green and digital transition, and bolster the resilience of the blue sustainable economy ecosystem in the medium to long-term.

This partnership promotes joint action through the establishment and implementation of a regional skills partnership, which shall build on existing structures fulfilling Pact for Skills criteria, in order to meet the skills needs of the entire workforce of the Adriatic - Ionian blue sustainable economy ecosystem, ensuring that any new skills are embedded in the overall policy and curricula for vocational education and training.

Pact for skills: New European Skills Agenda

The European Commission launched the new European Skills Agenda in 2020, announcing 12 actions organised around four building blocks: a call to join forces in a collective action through the Pact for skills, ensuring the right skills for jobs, initiatives to support people in their lifelong learning pathways, and a framework to unlock investments in skills.

The EU Pact for Skills was launched on 10 November 2020. The Pact is the first of the flagship actions under the European Skills Agenda and is firmly anchored in the European Pillar of Social Rights. The 14 ecosystems identified by the Industrial Strategy will build a Pact for Skills for each ecosystem. Commissioners Breton and Schmit organised a high-level Roundtable for the tourism ecosystem in October 2020.

The objective of the Pact for Skills is to promote joint action to maximise the impact of investing in improving existing skills (upskilling) and training in new skills (reskilling). It calls on industry, employers, social partners, chambers of commerce, public authorities, vocational education and training providers, higher education institutions and employment agencies to work together and make a clear commitment to invest in training for all working age people across the Union in the form of a large-scale skills partnership.

The Pact for Skills is accompanied by a Charter outlining a shared vision from industry, social partners, vocational education and training (VET) providers, national, regional and local authorities as regards quality training.

This initiative aims to mobilise resources to make investments in skills and set up a shared engagement model between the various actors mentioned above, to collectively take action to upskill and reskill the workforce of different industrial sectors.

Α) The challenge for the Blue Economy sector in EUSAIR

The blue economy in EU encompassing diverse sectors, such as maritime transport, coastal tourism, offshore renewable energy, marine biotechnology, and fisheries, and is a cornerstone of sustainable growth, as it offers immense potential for economic development, job creation, and environmental stewardship, with its significance for blue professions given shortly thereafter:

• Almost 90% of EU’s external trade is seaborne, with short sea shipping covering 1/3 of intra-EU
• Maritime transport ensures the quality of life on islands and coastal regions, providing needed goods, and supporting over 400M passenger movements annually.
• Fisheries and aquaculture provide healthy and nutritious food to EU citizens, ensuring our food
• Seafarers and port workers maintain supply chains, enable trade, ensure safe passenger travel, and drive technological innovation.
• The different blue professions supports economic efficiency, sustainability, career development and social cohesion, particularly in coastal and island regions.

The blue economy sectors face challenges in aligning with global sustainability goals, including the Sustainable Development Goals and the EU’s Blue-Growth strategy, with the most significant challenges for tomorrow to be the following:

• Technological evolution:
  • Adoption of automation and artificial intelligence
  • Need for upskilling to manage smart ships
• Environmental pressures:
  • Stricter regulations for reducing carbon emissions
  • Skills to operate eco-friendly vessels
• Social and mental health challenges:
  • Isolation, long working periods in remote areas or at sea
  • Evolving work-life balance demands
• Globalization:
  • Increased competition and international workforce dynamics
• Workforce Shortages:
  • Aging workforce and lack of youth interest in blue careers

However, to successfully address these topics there is a need for a workforce equipped with necessary skills to navigate the sector’s evolving demands.

Blue upskilling of local coastal population, through the improvement of their existing blue skills and further specialization in blue economy sectors, can secure the continuation of their presence in their ancestral communities, having in mind that new economic developments and infrastructures are transforming human uses, and also promote in the medium term the sustainable use of natural resources, which will create added value and new jobs in the area, and ensure in the long term their controlled exploitation and sustainable development.

Skills are necessary for the maritime industries for the green and digital transition and social cohesion in the local communities. EU has launched trans-sectorial skills initiatives: the European Year of Skills, S3, and the Pact for Skills, aiming to support private and public organizations.

Furthermore, other policies have the skills as a central point such as EU Sustainable Blue Economy Strategy and European Green Deal, so the latest emphasize the integration of blue skills into efforts to ensure that marine resources are used sustainably EU also encourages employers, clusters, trade unions, and any other relevant stakeholders to take action to upskill and reskill Europe's workers.

Nevertheless, cooperation between education, government, science, and businesses is fundamental in all Macro-Regions and in Sea basin Strategies.

European Union's Strategy for Adriatic & Ionian Region (EUSAIR) is a macro-regional strategy covering 4 EU Member States and 6 non-EU countries. Pillar 1 (Blue Sustainable Economy), commonly coordinated by Greece and Montenegro, focuses on Blue technologies, Fisheries & aquaculture, and, Maritime & marine governance & services.

EUSAIR’s strategy includes a strong focus on education, training, and upskilling to ensure that people have the skills required to work in the blue economy and it also supports the development of vocational education and training (VET).

To this end, the social pillar has been added to the Revised Action Plan, which also pertains social cohesion via further training and life-long learning not restricting these activities to the blue economy sector. At the Adriatic Ionian region, EUSAIR through its Action Plan revision prioritizes activities on skills, promoting the EU Pact for Skills.

According to the 9^th EUSAIR Annual Forum workshop held in Sibenic on May 2024:

• Blue skills are needed to support the innovative approach to a sustainable blue economy, which aims to contribute to achieving the dual challenge of the European Green Deal and the Recovery Plan for Europe: making Europe's economy fairer, more resilient, and more sustainable for future
• EU has launched trans-sectorial skills initiatives: the European Year of Skills and the Pact for Skills, aiming to support private and public organizations. However, cooperation between education, government, science, and businesses is fundamental. At the Adriatic Ionian region, EUSAIR prioritizes activities on Blue, Green and digital skills, promoting the EU Pact for Skills.
• In the maritime industrial ecosystem, including public authorities, associations, and SMEs, cooperative partnerships are supported by EU funds and provide upskilling and reskilling opportunities for people working in the maritime sectors and for the young generation to join this working environment.
• It will be helpful to capitalize clusters experience and their participation in the Pact for Skills of the two industrial ecosystems: Shipbuilding and Maritime Technology and Offshore Renewable Energy and to facilitate a constructive dialogue and networking among the SBE stakeholders.
• The EU is also reskilling workers from other sectors while improving the image of blue careers and developing blue skills across the EU.
• Sustainable Blue Economy (SBE) stakeholders and Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs), research and education Institutions, Clusters, could cooperate and establish Regional Scale Partnerships or Large Scale Partnerships for Skills and cooperate with DG REGIO, DG MARE, DG EMPL, DG GROW, DG ENERGY, and other EU Institutions to valorise the experience of the industrial ecosystems of the Pact for Skills and make the best use of the central respective EU funds (ESF, ERDF, EMFAF, Horizon, the New Growth Plan for WB programs). These funds directly and indirectly linked to programs such as INTERREG, IPA, and mainstream sectoral and regional EU Cohesion Policy programmes are particularly relevant to the blue economy sector as they can be used to prepare the strategy and architecture for the institutional and financial programs to support the green and digital transition.
• Need for exploring the feasibility for developing a Transition Pathway for Sustainable Blue

The current situation

During the successful event of the 10^th of December 2024 in Piraeus (Greece), which gathered more than 90 participants, the Pillar Coordinators of Pillar 1 were authorised to prepare a draft document outlining the Blue Skills regional partnership. This draft was consulted in a series of meetings with many stakeholders, with the goal to be signed by the interested stakeholders and establish a regional Blue Skills partnership.

The Pact for Blue Skills in EUSAIR has a strategic mid- and long-term approach. Though, a swift carrying out of its collaborative concept involving all stakeholders in the blue sustainable economy ecosystem will also allow addressing the urgent short-term needs as outlined above.

• Immediate action should focus on recovering the lost workforce, with re- and up-skilling both current and lost workforce in core new skills that are in demand as an important factor. This requires quick, non- bureaucratic and flexible public-private (PPP) cooperation between the public sector, education systems and the blue economy eco-system (especially industry and trade unions) as first practical step of the Pact for Blue
• Long-term, the disruption in skills demand and priorities together with a foreseeable shift in the composition of the workforce presents an opportunity to reset the blue economy sector, making it fit for the future through Skills Intelligence (the early detection of skills gaps, new occupational profiles), changes in training methodologies, and profound changes in the formal and informal education system as regards flexibility, quick uptake of new needs and opening up to lifelong training. This requires close and constructive cooperation between authorities that are responsible for legislation, teaching and training (HE / VET) entities and the private sector (industry and workforce).

The ambition

This Regional Pact for Blue Skills aims to bring together all types and sizes of businesses, from EU umbrella organisations, social partners, vocational and education training providers, to regional / municipal authorities, to speak with one voice in supporting specific commitments to reskilling and upskilling the Region’s workforce, in an effort to meet the objectives of the green and digital transition, and bolster the resilience of the blue sustainable economy in the medium to long-term.

The Pact for Blue Skills in EUSAIR intends to serve as a recovery strategy that implements an up/reskilling framework, maximising the potential of the blue economy sector, and all other economic activities which are somehow connected, building resilience and meeting the challenges of the blue, green, and digital transition.

This in turn creates new job opportunities and paves the way for a skills partnership for the blue ecosystem as a whole. It presents a roadmap towards skills transformation and contributes to sustainable development through immediate, short, and long-term action and strategy. It further broadens the outcomes of the Blueprint on Sectoral Cooperation to address blue skills needs in the different sectors, which provides key inputs to the future work of the skills partnership.

The partnership also builds on inclusivity and openness for all other existing or future stakeholders, initiatives, or projects to jointly cooperate under one European umbrella through an agreed governance structure. It shall set the base for overall higher qualification of the workforce in the sector, reducing job insecurity and improving working conditions that could assure higher levels of recruitment and retention of workers.

B)  Establishing a Regional Skills Partnership for Sustainable Blue Economy in EUSAIR The Proposal

Co-operation between education, government, science, and businesses is fundamental in all Macro Regional and Sea basin Strategies. EUSAIR’s strategy includes a strong focus on education, training, and upskilling to ensure that people have the skills required to work in the blue economy and it also supports the development of vocational education and training.

The partnership will promote joint actions in order to meet the skills needs of the entire workforce of the Adriatic - Ionian blue sustainable economy ecosystem, ensuring that any new skills are well embedded in the overall policy and curricula for vocational education and training.

European higher education institutions have yet to fully integrate skills development that meets industry needs, limiting growth, competitiveness, and opportunities within these sectors. Addressing these gaps requires a coordinated approach that enhances curriculum development, fosters innovation, and ensures graduates are equipped with relevant expertise to support sustainable economic development in blue economy industries.

The Blue Careers in Europe initiative highlights the shortage of skilled professionals in maritime industries, emphasizing the need for tailored educational programs to support employability.

The blue upskilling of the local coastal population, through the improvement of their existing blue skills and further specialization in blue economy sectors, can in the short term secure the continuation of their presence in their ancestral communities, in the medium term promote the sustainable use of natural resources, which will create added value and new jobs in the area, and, in long term, to ensure controlled exploitation and the sustainable development.

It is expected that the enhanced and targeted collaboration of all the participating stakeholders will encourage the development of common educational frameworks and resources that address key skills gaps, ensuring alignment with blue economy industries standards and labour market needs.

Commitments and actions of the Partnership

To achieve this ambition, the Blue Skills Partnership in EUSAIR makes the following commitments, implemented through key actions, as listed below:

• Promote blue skills and professions for sustainable blue economy business, by aligning with the EU Sustainable Business Taxonomy
• Incorporate blue skills with digital and green skills
• Host and promote capacity-building sessions and lifelong learning
• Place-based diagnostics:
  • Identify skills, needs, challenges, aspirations and resources (participatory process) of the local blue economy;
  • Align needs with training paths for young people through workshops and training
• Identify, monitor and document case studies of successful trans-sectoral cooperation on skills in blue economy sector
  • Focus on collaborations that integrate blue skills with other sectors, such as education, tourism, and regional development.
  • Highlight cross-sectoral approaches that leverage blue skills for innovation in the broader economy.
• Coordinate and expand local horizontal
• Provide analyses and assessments of public policies and formulate policy recommendations in the sectors related to blue skills needed in economy (in general), in education, in regional development, and in tourism.

C)  Planned activities during its initial phase, and further schedule

The Regional Skills Partnership for Sustainable Blue Economy in EUSAIR will design and implement, among others, the following activities:

Α) Informing about the combination and contribution of various policies and strategies at European level in blue skills development – not restraining the Blue skills to training and education for job creation and blue growth, but also for environmental prevention and maritime safety.

1. Informing the Blue economy clusters and stakeholders about the Pact for Skills

1. Exploring the synergies among EU funds and Programmes for supporting the Blue skills in Sustainable Blue Economy sector.
2. Conveying the experience and good practices of the existing LSP / Large Scale Partnerships or RSP/Regional Scale Partnerships in the Blue economy sector.
3. Informing about the Commission’s initiatives related to Blue Skills:
   1. EMFAF funded Blue Careers and some valuable examples of current projects (e.g. women in blue),
   2. The ongoing study on Blue Skills which aims to analyse the current and expected short-, mid-, and long-term developments of skills in the various sectors of the blue economy in the EU,
   3. The necessity of a seamless, sustainable energy transition: the importance of Energy Transition Partnership (ETP) in relation to Blue Skills.
4. Organising one-off or regular project matchmaking events to prepare for joint

D)  Targets, Key Milestones, and Performance Indicators

Main Targets of the Pact for Blue Skills in EUSAIR towards 2030

1. Assess current and future skills needs across the EU-27, spanning both traditional and emerging maritime sectors.
2. Map existing education and training opportunities and evaluate their alignment with industry
3. Develop targeted recommendations to address identified skills
4. Examine EU-funded initiatives on blue skills to identify best practices and areas for

By year 1: Best practices capitalisation and shared in online training webinars and seminars; Creation of guides for EU policies and funding for blue skills.

By year 2: Formulate a joint Platform in Sustainable Blue Economy; TSGs, regions, academics, and clusters participate in the joint platform.

By year 3: Develop joint flagship and common projects for Funding; Increase Blue skills promoters.

Key Performance Indicators for the Pact for Blue Skills in EUSAIR

• Training/education and up/reskilling¹ a mean 10% of the blue sustainable economy workforce of EUSAIR each year from 2026 until 2030 to tackle the blue skills gaps in the BSE ecosystem both for the current workforce and new entrants.
• Enabling conditions:
  • Share of services and workers that are aware of the need to up- and reskill (100%) o Share of services and workers that have effective career guidance and development services available (50%) and share of services in the BSE ecosystem that declare to have access to dedicated support for up- and reskilling actions (50%)
  • Where applicable, workers and their representatives should be involved in identifying the training needs, setting up training plans, implementing the training and evaluating the results.

1 Upskilling: improve the level and scope of existing skills. Reskilling: add new (previously not existing) skills to the qualification / change the skills profile of a person. Upskilling or reskilling actions may include any formal or non-formal education or training supported by employers or associated training organisations in line with the definition of the European Labour Force Survey.

• Increase of blended training concepts (apprenticeships, internships, etc.) in formal blue training curricula (KPI: tbd)², with an emphasis on green and digital skills.
• Increase the up/reskilling activities and participation by 40% for the employed workforce, and by 80% for unemployed until 2025, focussed on job retention / job offers.
• Increase the number of successful training certifications by 10% per
• Increase of integration of formal recognition of work experience and certifications from lifelong learning actions into formal higher-level certificates (KPI: tbd)³.
• Achieve a mean duration of training, education, re- and up-skilling activities on different blue skills of at least 50 hours per participant per year.
• Annual revision and update of blue skills demand and development for the region. In view of the foreseeable dynamic of new blue skills and blue occupations in the next years, as a target, in the period 2026 - 2030 and across EUSAIR, each year at least one new skill and two new occupational profiles shall be detected and addressed in the following year by adequate training offers⁴.
• Real-time detection in blue skills gaps through data mining and cooperation between public and private employment agents, either jointly evaluating their existing statistics and data or by setting up a new integrative system. Timeline: started in 2026, two years for design (2028), two years for full implementation (2030).
• Special attention to disadvantaged groups or groups at risk of social exclusion (women, youth, immigrants, workers with disabilities, remote communities), regarding their re-/upskilling, and for their proper integration into Blue Sustainable Economy job market. KPI: number of up/reskilled persons from these groups 20% above their share in the overall workforce.
• The high-level of the quality of training offers should be ensured, following appropriate European guidelines on educational quality assurance. (KPI: tbd).

 

Tracking the impact

 

KPI	Target	Timeframe for Achievement	Key Milestones
Establishment and operation of the Pact as a creative, collaborative incubator	Operational Pact	2026	Launch of the Pact to facilitate training programmes, incubate innovative projects, and expand regional networking initiatives through partnerships with local organisations and European networks.
Number of up-skilling opportunities combining blue, digital, and green, skills offered	5	2026	Training and skilling programmes for the blue economy sector linked to partnership's work, with complementary actions planned
Number of organisations participating in the Partnership and its activities	15	2026	5 Faculties and Schools, 10 other entities

2 Blended training concepts both refers to a mix of on-the-job learning through internships and apprenticeships together with blended learning, which combines traditional face-to-face classroom training and high-tech eLearning.

3 In some Member States, work experience and training certifications are being transformed or integrated into formal higher-level certificates (certification exercise).

4 National and regional skills groups and/or partnerships should identify any new skills competences and/or occupational profiles required for the sector each year, which should be subsequently addressed in training offers.

 

Number of projects financially supported to promote blue related skills in other sectors	2	2027	Assistance provided in connecting with EU funds and supporting applications for relevant proposals
Number of events/networks participated in to foster knowledge transfer and dissemination	4	2026	Regional Blue Skills Partnership in EUSAIR introduced at key Blue Economy events and conferences (e.g., European Maritime Day)

 

E)  Partnership rules and arrangements

Potential Participants and Procedure for Joining the Pact

The applications to join the Pact for Blue Skills in EUSAIR can be submitted at any time.

Participants can be any institutional stakeholders and members of the Thematic Steering or Action Groups of the EUSAIR, Macro Regional and Sea Basin Strategies, Academic and research institutions and Clusters in fisheries, aquaculture, maritime governance, ports and sea services, Business and Marketing associations, Groups of Growers, Microenterprises, SMEs, and SBE companies, Consumer and Environmental organisations, International organisations, Networks of organisations, NGOs, Local, regional and national administrations, Trade unions, etc, who have interest to collectively work on the further development of Blue Skills in EUSAIR.

Partnership advantages

• Regular online meetings to share best practices and information, work towards achieving the Pact for Blue Skills in EUSAIR objectives.
• Frequent networking and other skills-related events &
• Participation in the Pact for Skills Task Force Activities in cooperation with DG Employment, Grow, Mare, Regio.