DIGITALEUROPE, whose members include in total over 25,000 ICT Companies in Europe represented by 38
national trade associations from across Europe, believes that the European Union can achieve a Digital
Single Market that will create hundreds of thousands of jobs and generate billions of euros to be invested
in important social and economic programmes.
According to Cecilia Bonefeld-Dahl
Director General DIGITALEUROPE "we understand from the draft plans for the next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) that you are
considering a strategic structural instrument, entitled “Digital Europe Programme” that will help drive the
development and adoption of important technologies, including artificial intelligence, high performance
computing, advanced digital skills, cybersecurity, and interoperability solutions.
We applaud any effort to direct the current European Structural and Investment Funds to accelerate the
implementation of super-fast Internet to reach and connect all communities across the Union, no matter
how remote, as we firmly believe access to technology is crucial for Europe’s future.
DIGITALEUROPE’s Members fully support your efforts and stand firmly behind you to make this a reality.
We also congratulate your commitment to ensure that digital skills and education reform remains a priority
of the current and the next Commission, as we firmly believe a lot more can be done in this area.
DIGITALEUROPE has been leading the secretariat of the Digital Skills & Jobs Coalition since its launch and
we strongly support the Digital Opportunity traineeship scheme. We are ready to enhance our close
partnership with the EU institutions in leveraging future EU-wide projects in the fields of Artificial
Intelligence, cybersecurity and computational thinking.
The existing instruments that include ESIF (especially ESF, ERDF, CF), Horizon 2020/FP9, Erasmus+, COSME
and EFSI should remain in place as they deliver an important source of investment through research
programmes and dispense essential skills training that are critical to the future of the EU project and to
tackle the difficult societal challenges ahead.
However, considering the Commission’s plans to double the
amounts currently invested in the digital economy, DIGITALEUROPE calls for a stronger ICT focus in all these
instruments.
Regarding the next Framework Programme for Research and Innovation (FP9), we support President
Juncker’s commitment to aim for a 160 billion Euros budget, which would result in the net creation of
650,000 jobs by 2040 and a GDP increase of 0.5 per cent. DIGITALEUROPE stresses the need for FP9 to keep
funding and involving the digital industry to nurture a proven collaborative R&I environment of large firms,
SMEs, universities and research institutes.
Together with the creation of a Digital Europe Programme, would help the European Union to foster innovation and complete the much-needed digitalisation of
Europe.
With digital transformation in full gear, digital skills as transversal skills are important for life and work of
every citizen. We would like to see more allocation of EU funds and programmes to the development of
digital skills (on basic and advanced levels separately), allowing the upskilling and reskilling of the current
and future workforce, as well as more encouragement for industry-education cooperation.
Our Members and National Trade Associations from across Europe stand ready to discuss this topic with
you and the co-legislators.
We invite the European Commission, the Parliament and the Council of the EU
to maintain an open dialogue with DIGITALEUROPE regarding current legislative files and to hear our
concerns and recommendations for future regulatory policies".
