The Pact for Skills was launched as one of the flagship actions of the European Skills Agenda for the period 2020-2025.
The Pact aims to support public and private organisations with upskilling and reskilling, so they can thrive through the green and digital transitions.
Members of the Pact have access to knowledge on upskilling and reskilling needs, advice on relevant funding instruments to boost the skills of adults in their regions and countries, and partnership opportunities within a growing community.
Who can join the Pact?
National, regional and local authorities; companies; social partners; cross-industry and sectoral organisations; chambers of commerce; education and training providers; employment services – they can all become members of the Pact for Skills.
What does the Pact for Skills offer?
All members of the Pact can benefit from three dedicated services:
- Through the Networking Hub, members can find partners and relevant EU tools (like Europass, Skills Panorama, EURES and the European Network of Public Employment Services). They can also promote their activities.
- The Knowledge Hub organises webinars, seminars and peer learning activities for members. It also provides updates on EU policies and instruments, as well as information on projects, tools, and best practices.
- In the Guidance Hub, members can find information about EU and national funding opportunities, and guidance to partnering with national and regional authorities.
Skills partnerships
The priority of the Pact for Skills is to strengthen collective action on skills development by all stakeholders through skills partnerships.
At EU level, Large-Scale Skills partnerships (LSPs) set up a shared engagement model for collective action where major players in industrial ecosystems and value or supply chains, commit to cooperate and invest to provide upskilling and reskilling opportunities for people of working age in the whole industrial ecosystem.
Regional Skills Partnerships (RSPs) are similar multi-stakeholder partnerships seeking to advance the Pact for Skills’ objectives at the regional level.
The Pact for Skills currently counts with 3200 members, including 20 large-scale partnerships, 13 regional skills partnerships, 60 other partnerships and 1000 individual members.
There are currently two skills partnerships directly linked to the Energy Transition Partnership for EU fisheries and aquaculture (ETP):
- Skills partnership for Shipbuilding and Maritime Technology : The partnership, composed of industry representatives, education providers, national and regional sector stakeholders and regional authorities, aims to attract, train and retain highly skilled workers to reinforce competitiveness and innovation in the shipbuilding and maritime technology sector and to ensure that Europe can achieve its goal of smart, zero-emission ships and technologies by 2030.
Through its activities, the Shipbuilding and Maritime Technology LSP aims to promote upskilling and reskilling of 7% of the workforce each year by 2030 across the ecosystem.
- Skills partnership for the Agri-food Ecosystem : The Skills partnership for the agri-food ecosystem, represented by EU associations, organisations and social partners, national federations and associations, and businesses, commits to establishing a joint strategy to design and implement a sectoral education, training, upskilling and reskilling framework which maximises competitiveness of all actors involved, and enhances job attractiveness and retention. This skills partnership could lead to the creation of a working group on fisheries and aquaculture.
How can ETP organisations also join the Pact for Skills and their skills partnerships?
You can join the Pact as an individual organisation, or by forming or joining a skills partnership. Partnerships can be set up on the regional and local level, or on the EU level for an industrial ecosystem.
To join the Pact, visit the Pact for Skills website, sign the Charter of the Pact for Skills, agreeing to uphold its key principles and be ready to define your commitments on upskilling and reskilling following the simple steps in the membership form.
Funding opportunities
EU funding can play an essential role in supporting Pact members to foster skills development, resilience, cooperation and innovative approaches to upskilling and reskilling at national and regional level. This is why the Pact for Skills website includes a database and search tool for funding opportunities, where stakeholders can find key information on open and forthcoming funding calls under EU funding programmes specific to skills development, upskilling and reskilling.
The funding tool is set to include relevant funding opportunities at EU, national and regional level. It includes calls under EU funding programmes that are directly managed by the European Commission (e.g. Horizon Europe, Creative Europe, Erasmus+, etc.), as well as information on opportunities under programmes managed at national and regional level with a focus on the following programmes, as they are the most relevant for upskilling and reskilling: European Social Fund Plus (ESF+); European Regional Development Fund (ERDF); Just Transition Fund (JTF); and Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF).
Union of Skills
On 5 March 2025, the Commission adopted the Union of Skills to address skills and labour shortages. As part of the Union, the Commission will reinforce the Pact for Skills to help more workers gain new skills in strategic sectors.
Study on blue skills
In 2024–2025, the Commission funded a study on blue skills to identify needs and gaps, develop a competency framework, and inform future policy initiatives.
You can find the study’s findings, including a list of blue skills projects, here.