General

digital skills

Competences per DigComp 2.3 AT across basic to advanced digital tasks.

How the laws define this

National strategies and digital frameworks consistently view digital skills as a spectrum of competencies ranging from basic everyday literacy for citizens to advanced, specialized ICT capabilities for the workforce. They uniformly apply these abilities across formal education, reskilling, and lifelong learning to foster public participation in the digital economy. The main divergence lies in structural framework alignment and functional scope. The Digital Skills Initiative and the National Action Plan for Digital Skills 2021-2025 explicitly align their definitions with the DigComp framework or taxonomy. In contrast, policies like the Digital Strategy for Cyprus 2020-2025 and the National eSkills Strategy 2022–2025 of the eSkills Malta Foundation establish categorical competency tiers without referencing DigComp. Additionally, while most frameworks focus on practical technology usage and development, the Action Plan for the Digital Transformation of Slovakia 2023–2026 uniquely expands the definition to include the qualifications required to govern digital technologies.

Synthesised from the 12 statutory definitions below. Each one is quoted in full, with its source.

Definitions (12)

Capabilities defined according to the DigComp taxonomy as adapted in DigComp 2.3 AT, spanning basic use and safety (e.g., e‑government access, online privacy) to intermediate and advanced employment‑oriented skills (e.g., data literacy, IT specialist competences). The framework provides levels and learning outcomes used for curriculum mapping and certification under the DKO.

A categorical framework of digital competencies ranging from basic everyday digital literacy, through intermediate workforce competences, to specialist ICT skills such as developers and data scientists, used to target education and upskilling initiatives across the population and labour market.

Competencies aligned with the European DigComp framework, comprising information and data literacy, communication and collaboration, content creation, safety, and problem solving for effective digital participation. The Plan uses this definition to structure curricula, training and assessment across citizen and workforce programmes.

Encompasses a spectrum of competencies required to use digital technologies effectively, ranging from basic digital literacy for everyday tasks to advanced ICT professional competences for specialised technical roles. The Strategy frames these skills for practical programmatic delivery across education, society and the labour market.

Competencies of citizens, students, teachers, civil servants and the workforce enabling the use of e‑services, participation in digital employment, and lifelong learning; includes both basic and advanced digital abilities and targets for population uptake by 2027.

A range of competencies covering basic digital literacy, vocational and lifelong learning, and advanced ICT competences required for education, workforce reskilling and broader societal digital inclusion.

A range of basic to advanced competences across the workforce and education systems, covering digital literacy, reskilling/upskilling for ICT roles, and targeted training for civil servants to support digital uptake.

Basic to advanced competences enabling citizens and the workforce to participate in the digital economy, encompassing formal education, lifelong learning and targeted reskilling programmes as defined for planning and measurement in the Strategy.

The set of competences, knowledge and abilities individuals need to effectively use digital technologies in education, work and daily life, including formal curricula, teacher training and lifelong learning provisions aimed at digital inclusion.

Means the competences and qualifications required by both citizens and specialist workers to effectively use, develop and govern digital technologies, spanning formal education, vocational training and lifelong learning. The Action Plan details strategies and programmes to build these skills from schools to seniors to ensure uptake and inclusion.

Encompasses competencies spanning basic digital literacy through to specialist ICT capabilities required by the labour market, including the ability to use, understand and develop digital technologies in educational, professional and social contexts.

A spectrum of competences covering basic digital literacy, intermediate workplace-relevant skills, advanced technical abilities and expert ICT specialist capabilities used across education, employment and lifelong learning contexts.