In June 2025, the European Commission published its first reporting package under the Digital Decade Policy Programme (DDPP) presenting a detailed overview of the Union’s progress toward the 2030 digital targets. The package includes a Communication (State of the Digital Decade 2025) and a statistical supplement (Annex 1 – Progress per target and area). These two documents together offer the first harmonised and evidence-based assessment of how Member States are progressing in the four cardinal dimensions of Europe’s digital transition: skills, infrastructure, business digitalisation, and digital public services.
The 2025 data refer to the reference year 2023 and are derived from Eurostat, DESI, and national sources. The reporting system aligns with Decision (EU) 2022/2481, which formalised the governance of the Digital Decade from January 2023 onward.
Digital Skills: Workforce Readiness, Education and Inclusion
The 2030 target for basic digital skills is for 80% of the EU population aged 16–74 to possess at least basic digital competence. As of 2023, 55.6% of this group met that threshold. The indicator has improved steadily, particularly in countries with strong national education strategies, such as Finland, Denmark and the Netherlands.
In parallel, the number of ICT specialists employed in the EU reached 9.76 million in 2023, measured as the share of the workforce working in ICT roles. The end-decade target is 20 million. The rate of growth has been stable, supported by increased demand in sectors like cloud infrastructure, cybersecurity, and AI development.
Gender Participation in ICT Professions
One of the most significant dimensions tracked in the Digital Skills pillar is gender representation. In 2023, women accounted for only 19.5% of ICT specialists across the EU, a figure that has remained constant over the past three years. Although the Digital Decade framework does not include a quantitative target specific to women in ICT, this indicator is officially monitored as part of the progress evaluation.
This low figure is addressed explicitly in the annex and in the Communication. The Commission highlights the importance of increasing female participation in digital careers, encouraging Member States to act through national strategies and education reforms. Emphasis is placed on creating pathways into ICT for women through STEM education, scholarships, retraining programmes and inclusive hiring practices.
“Special attention should be paid to bridging the gender gap and fostering inclusive access to digital skills and careers.” (State of the Digital Decade 2025, p. 10)
Infrastructure: Access, Speed and Capacity
The Digital Decade targets universal coverage by very high capacity networks (VHCNs) and 5G in populated areas by 2030. In 2023, 64.1% of EU households had access to VHCNs, including fibre and DOCSIS 3.1+. As for mobile networks, 89.1% of populated areas were covered by 5G, although only 10.6% of these were standalone 5G (SA).
In addition, edge computing capabilities are spreading: 21 Member States reported having at least one operational edge node in 2023. While no formal target has been set for edge deployment, the Commission considers it essential for decentralised data processing and latency-sensitive applications.
The production of semiconductors is another dimension closely tracked. In 2023, less than 10% of EU internal demand for chips was met by European manufacturers. The Digital Decade aims to double this share to 20% by 2030, in line with Europe’s strategic autonomy goals as framed by the European Chips Act.
The Commission notes that national broadband plans, supported by Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) investments and CEF Digital, continue to play a central role in closing gaps across territories.
Business Digitalisation: Technology Adoption and Innovation Capacity
One of the EU’s composite targets is for 75% of all businesses to adopt at least one advanced digital technology by 2030—namely, cloud computing, big data analytics, or artificial intelligence (AI).
In 2023, the average adoption rates across Member States were:
- 45.2% for cloud services
- 29.2% for big data analytics
- 8.1% for artificial intelligence
The variation between small and large enterprises remains considerable, with larger firms typically showing higher levels of adoption. The Commission supports SMEs through the Digital Europe Programme, as well as through the European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIHs), which offer digital maturity assessments, testing environments and access to public-private partnerships.
While this pillar does not track a gender-specific indicator, it is indirectly linked to the development of a diverse digital economy, where more inclusive access to business resources, capital and innovation hubs is encouraged through existing EU programmes.
Digital Public Services: Accessibility, Identity and Interoperability
The digitalisation of government services has progressed substantially. According to the 2023 data:
- 92.9% of core services for citizens and 89.1% for businesses were available online
- 50.6% of the population had access to a national digital identity (eID)
- Interoperable electronic health records (EHRs) were in place in six Member States, with expansion underway in several others
The Commission supports these goals through the eIDAS 2.0 regulation, which lays the foundation for the European Digital Identity Wallet, and the development of the European Health Data Space (EHDS), which fosters secure, cross-border exchange of medical information.
The Communication also references accessibility and usability as integral to the uptake of services, calling on Member States to focus on design that reflects user diversity, including gender, age, literacy level and regional context.
The reporting package confirms that 26 out of 27 Member States submitted a national strategic roadmap in line with Article 16 of the DDPP. These roadmaps are now used as inputs for the multiannual monitoring and dialogue mechanism coordinated by the Digital Decade Board.
The framework includes country-specific indicators, reforms and investment plans. From 2026, an annual evaluation will review each Member State’s progress toward the EU targets, with feedback feeding into national and Union-level policy cycles.
Conclusion: Inclusion and Coordination on the Path to 2030
The 2025 State of the Digital Decade Report and its technical annex present an evidence-based and methodical picture of the EU’s progress in digital transformation. The structured focus on skills, infrastructure, enterprise and services allows policymakers to track progress and refine actions based on objective data.
The integration of gender monitoring within the skills pillar reflects the Commission’s commitment to inclusiveness as a guiding principle of the digital transition. The emphasis on gender equality in ICT professions, combined with broader support for diverse participation, strengthens the societal foundations of the Digital Decade.
The documents affirm that the shared framework, aligned indicators and multi-level governance of the DDPP provide a robust structure to accompany Europe on the path to a digital, competitive and cohesive future.
📘 Documents referenced:
1) Full report – https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/library/state-digital-decade-2025-report
2) Reports by country – https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/factpages/digital-decade-2025-report-country-fact-pages
3) Annex 1 – State of EU digital transformation in 2025: progress and horizontal recommendations – https://ec.europa.eu/newsroom/dae/redirection/document/116740
