The ability to use a computer, smartphone, and the internet is now an absolute necessity in every industry and daily life. We show you where in Greater Poland you can catch up if you’re lacking these skills.
Nearly 90 percent of Europeans over the age of 15 use the internet regularly, but only 56 percent have at least basic digital skills – according to Eurostat data from 2023. How do Poles fare in this context? With an indicator of 44 percent, we are at the bottom of the EU, alongside Romania (28 percent) and Bulgaria (36 percent). More than half of our country’s residents have poor digital competence or none at all – they can’t use a search engine or a text editor, or pay taxes via a banking app on their phone. We are separated from the ranking leader, the Netherlands, by as much as 38 percentage points. This is very bad news, because digital exclusion often goes hand-in-hand with social exclusion today, and as much as 90 percent of current jobs require digital skills.
Digital skills without secrets
The concept of digital skills includes not only obvious things like using a computer or working as a programmer, a profession that has seen a boom in recent years (including among women). It’s also the ability to search for and select information online, to understand it and think critically, and to distinguish between trustworthy information and fake news. Digital competence means communicating remotely using various tools and programs, as well as handling daily private and professional tasks online. It involves knowledge of basic cybersecurity to protect against data loss, identity theft, fraud, and surveillance. Finally, it’s about digital hygiene, meaning responsible and balanced use of online resources, including social media. Basic rules of digital hygiene include: monitoring screen time and taking breaks to be offline, avoiding information overload, and maintaining social relationships in real life.
ICT specialists wanted
As indicated by the above-mentioned Eurostat report, Poland also currently lacks ICT staff—specialists who could develop new technologies, support digital transformation of companies, and create innovative products. The digital leaders of Europe are Finland (8.3 percent) and Sweden (8.1 percent). In Poland, ICT workers make up just 3.5 percent of total employment, while the EU average is 4.6 percent. Although it may seem that the Polish IT sector is booming, we still lack engineers, analysts, and programmers, and without them, the automation of industry, digitalization of public services or the development of AI in business will be delayed or even impossible.
How to improve your skills online?
Enhancing your skills online is a must, as Europe is already a continent of e-services and digital challenges, and this development is only going to accelerate. To begin with, it’s worth checking where you currently stand – on the website kompetencjecyfrowe.gov.pl you can take the official Europass Digital Skills test (in English) to find out in which areas you still need to improve and what you can already confidently put in your CV.
The Europass test assesses five key areas: the ability to use information and data (searching for information, organizing it, and evaluating its credibility), communication and collaboration (including managing your online identity and using remote work tools, which have become standard in many professions), creating digital content (editing texts, graphics, and multimedia content, knowledge of copyright), security (data protection, privacy management, and awareness of digital threats), and solving technical problems and using new technologies.
Where to develop online skills in Greater Poland?
E-learning platforms: e.g. PARP Academy and NASK
Remote programming courses: e.g. Future Collars, Coders Lab
Digital competence centers: e.g. Information Society Development Foundation,
public libraries
Universities and technical schools: PP, UAM, UP, vocational universities
Online courses: Coursera, edX, Google Skillshop, LinkedIn Learning
Would you like to improve your digital skills and stay up to date with the lifelong learning opportunities available in Greater Poland? Visit the “LLL po wielkopolsku” page: Facebook