Launched: October 2025
The challenge
The European Union’s drive towards the twin transition – digital and green – is transforming the way we live and work, how businesses run, and how regions evolve. This shift opens exciting opportunities for innovation, competitiveness, and sustainable development.
While the twin transition offers benefits, not all regions start from the same position. As such, the Thessaly region in Central Greece stands at a critical crossroads. With GDP per capita at just 51% of the EU average and some of the highest unemployment rates in Europe – 33.3% for youth and 9.1% long-term – the region must overcome deep-rooted structural barriers to unlock its potential.
The twin transition offers a clear path forward, but without targeted support, regions like Thessaly risk falling behind. There are, however, opportunities in smart farming, clean energy, digital tourism, and circular production models.
The ambition
The Regional Skills Partnership aims to establish a future-ready workforce, ensuring that no person, sector, or community is left behind.
By focusing on sectors such as smart agriculture, renewable energy, eco-tourism, and digital logistics, the Regional Skills Partnership will equip regional workers with the skills they need to thrive in a green and digital economy.
It also tackles long-standing challenges, such as structural unemployment, with targeted training and upskilling opportunities for young people, women, the long-term unemployed, and rural populations.
Additionally, the Regional Skills Partnership aims to position Thessaly as a model for skills-based economic transformation – grounded in its Smart Specialisation Strategy (RIS3) and aligned with major EU initiatives such as the European Green Deal, the Digital Decade and the European Pillar of Social rights.
Therefore, the Regional Skills Partnership will be a platform for collaboration, connecting education, innovation, and industry to shape a more resilient and sustainable future.
The commitments
The Regional Skills Partnership has committed to a set of actions to provide the region’s workforce with the skills needed to drive and sustain the twin transition.
Most importantly, it will design and deliver upskilling and reskilling programmes that are tailored to Thessaly’s green and digital priorities. By 2030, the Regional Skills Partnership will launch at least 25 modular training programmes, focusing on sectors such as agri-food innovation, renewable energy, digital tourism, sustainable logistics, alongside additional sectors identified through regional surveys.
To ensure Thessaly’s workforce is ready for the future, the Regional Skills Partnership will establish a dedicated skills observatory. The observatory will monitor job market trends, anticipate future needs, and identify gaps across key sectors.
The Regional Skills Partnership is also committed to building strong collaboration across the region. To boost visibility, strengthen training capacity, and position Thessaly as a leader in the twin transition, it will host the biannual Thessaly Summit.
The Summit will welcome European partners from established and emerging EU networks, building strategic project partnerships and elevating Thessaly’s role in the European skills landscape.
The impact
The Regional Skills Partnership will coordinate a permanent steering structure, supported by quarterly meetings, sectoral working groups, and joint progress tracking.
The Regional Skills Partnership will deliver upskilling and reskilling programmes through formats such as blended and distance learning – reaching rural workers, women, youth, and the long-term unemployed.
The Regional Skills Partnership will run campaigns through local media and organise community events. Additionally, the annual Thessaly Summit will empower members to increase their individual and collective impact.
Looking ahead, the Regional Skills Partnership will launch a Sustainability and Funding Mechanism to ensure long-term impact. It will map EU and national funding opportunities, support joint proposals for green and digital skills, and engage private sector partners for co-investment. Delivered through the Thessaly Skills Forum, this platform will help members mobilise resources, scale innovation, and boost collective impact.
View the document below to learn more about the Regional Skills Partnerships for the twin transition of Thessaly Region.
