The European Commission announced on 11 June 2025 the launch of the Metropolitan Lisbon Area Regional Skills Partnership (MLA RSP), a new Regional Skills Partnership under the Pact for Skills, bringing together multiple public and private stakeholders committed to accelerating digital transformation and talent development in the region. The partnership is led by NOVA FCT, with the participation of organisations such as MyBusiness.com and Santander, alongside other actors from the academic, business, and institutional ecosystems.

This initiative comes at a time when digital transformation is profoundly reshaping Europe’s labour markets, creating new challenges for employability, business competitiveness, and social cohesion. As one of Portugal’s main economic and technological hubs, the Lisbon region faces specific challenges, including the underestimation of the pace of digital acceleration, fragmented learning provision, and limited scalability of training programmes.

A Structured Response to the Digital Transition

The ambition of the MLA Regional Skills Partnership is to directly address these challenges by developing concrete, modular, and scalable learning pathways, aligned with real labour market needs and with the broader objectives of the European Pact for Skills. The initiative aims to strengthen Lisbon’s digital economy while contributing to Europe’s competitiveness, innovation capacity, and inclusive growth.

The Lisbon Metropolitan Area includes the city of Lisbon and 17 surrounding municipalities—Amadora, Oeiras, Cascais, Sintra, Loures, Almada, Seixal, Barreiro, Moita, Sesimbra, Palmela, Setúbal, Mafra, Vila Franca de Xira, Montijo, and Alcochete—representing a diverse ecosystem of talent, companies, educational institutions, and public bodies.

Focus on Five Priority Target Groups

The partnership’s core mission is to equip both students and professionals—particularly those undergoing career transitions—with the digital and entrepreneurial skills required to thrive in an increasingly technology-driven labour market. To achieve this, the MLA RSP establishes a flexible, multi-stakeholder framework, bringing together higher education institutions, businesses, public authorities, and civil society organisations.

The strategy focuses on five priority target groups:

• Non-Tech Students: providing digital and technology skills that enhance employability across all disciplines.
  
• Science & Technology Students: embedding entrepreneurial, innovation, and intrapreneurship capabilities to stimulate new ventures and innovation within organisations.
  
• SME Managers and Teams: accelerating digital adoption through tailored training on tools, platforms, and business transformation.
  
• Older Workers (45+): promoting lifelong learning to reduce talent shortages and support accessible upskilling and reskilling pathways.
  
• Women in Tech & Leadership: addressing persistent gender gaps by supporting women’s progression into digital and decision-making roles.

Alignment with the European Skills Agenda

By joining the Pact for Skills, the Metropolitan Lisbon Area Regional Skills Partnership positions itself as a strong example of territorial implementation of Europe’s skills strategy, combining regional scale with European-level impact. The initiative reinforces Lisbon’s role as a hub for digital talent and innovation while fostering a more inclusive and sustainable digital transition across the region.