2030 digital decade policy programme

SUMMARY OF:

Decision (EU) 2022/2481 establishing the 2030 digital decade policy programme

WHAT IS THE AIM OF THE DECISION?

The decision establishes the 2030 digital decade policy programme designed to promote innovation and investment in the European Union (EU) through:

setting a clear direction and measurable targets for digital transformation in the EU by 2030;
structuring the cooperation between the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union, the European Commission and EU Member States;
encouraging consistent, comparable, transparent and complete EU monitoring and reporting.

KEY POINTS

General objectives

The European Parliament, the Council, the Commission and Member States should cooperate on the following objectives:

an inclusive, transparent and open digital environment, human centred and based on fundamental rights, where secure and interoperable digital technologies and services enhance EU principles, rights and values – accessible to everyone, everywhere in the EU;
enhancing resilience, bridging the digital divide, achieving gender balance, developing digital skills in Member States and encouraging highly performing digital capacities in education and training;
secure and accessible digital and data infrastructures capable of storing and processing vast volumes of data that enable other technological developments, supporting the EU’s industry and economy, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), encouraging start-ups and supporting the functioning of digital innovation hubs;
deployment and the use of digital capabilities in order to reduce the geographical digital divide, also giving open, accessible and fair access to digital technologies and data;
a comprehensive and sustainable ecosystem of interoperable digital infrastructures, where high performance, edge, cloud, quantum computing, artificial intelligence, data management and network connectivity converge;
an EU digital regulatory environment to support EU businesses, especially SMEs, to compete in global value chains;
online participation in democratic life for everyone, with public services, health and care services accessible in a trusted and secure online environment, in particular for disadvantaged groups;
more sustainable, resilient and energy- and resource-efficient digital infrastructure and technologies, including supply chains, aiming to minimise their negative environmental and social impact;
greater resilience to cyberattack.

Digital targets

The digital targets to be reached in the EU by 2030 include:

no less than 80% of those aged 16–74 to have at least basic digital skills;
at least 20 million information and communications technology (ICT) specialists employed in the EU, promoting women’s access and increasing the number of ICT graduates;
every fixed location supplied by a gigabit network and every populated area covered by high-speed networks at least equivalent to 5G;
semiconductor production in the EU to be at least 20% of world production (in value) in accordance with EU law on environmental sustainability;
the first computer with quantum acceleration in the EU by 2025, paving the way to be at the cutting edge of quantum capabilities by 2030;
at least 75% of EU businesses to have taken up cloud computing services, big data or artificial intelligence;
no less than 90% of SMEs to reach at least a basic level of digital intensity;
100% online accessible digital public services and 100% access for EU citizens to their electronic health data and to secure means of electronic identification recognised EU wide.

The Commission and Member States

The Commission, in close cooperation with Member States, must define the EU-level projected routes to reach each of the digital targets.
Each Member State should submit a national roadmap to the Commission indicating the measures, policies and actions they intend to put in place up to 2030 to contribute to the achievement of European digital objectives and targets.
The Commission monitors progress towards the general objectives and the digital targets, and submits an annual report to the Parliament and to the Council on the state of the digital decade, identifying significant gaps and shortages and recommending policies, measures or actions to be taken in areas where progress was insufficient.
The Commission and the Member States must cooperate to identify concrete actions to address shortcomings where there is insufficient progress.
To contribute to the achievement of the general objectives and of the digital targets, Member States may carry out multi-country projects (MCPs). MCPs should be implemented in a coordinated manner, in close cooperation between the Commission and Member States. Where appropriate, the European digital infrastructure consortia can be used as an implementation mechanism for MCPs. The Commission will support the implementation of MCPs by providing services and resources, as appropriate.
The Commission and Member States must consult with private and public stakeholders to gather information and develop policies, measures and actions to implement this decision.

FROM WHEN DOES THE DECISION APPLY?

It has applied since 8 January 2023.

BACKGROUND

For further information, see:

‘Path to the digital decade’: The EU’s plan to achieve a digital Europe by 2030 (European Council – Council of the European Union);
Europe’s digital decade: Digital targets for 2030 (European Commission).

MAIN DOCUMENT

Decision (EU) 2022/2481 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 December 2022 establishing the Digital Decade Policy Programme 2030 (OJ L 323, 19.12.2022, pp. 4–26).