A new white paper on the Norwegian education system, “The Perspective Paper” (“Utsynsmeldingen”), emphasizes the need for an education providing people with the skills that society needs for the green transition, a highly productive working life and good welfare services in the future. 

Among the several challenges, the Norwegian Government has identified the following: 

• The skills gap and the recruitment problems are largest in the sectors of technology, craftsmen, health and education,  

• Due to the ageing of the population, the need for skilled workers in the health sector will increase, 

• 44 per cent of the adults who are not in work have only completed primary education. 

• The green transition will create needs for expertise in various sectors, among which technology. 

To cope with this, some of the Norwegian Government’s proposals are to:  

• steer the educational pathways of pupils and students in secondary and tertiary education in line with the need of skills in the labour market, 

• improve the supply of flexible and de-centralized tertiary vocational education and higher education, 

• improve the cooperation between labour market authorities and counties, who are responsible for the secondary education. 

Source: Eurydice Unit Norway