European Commission Grants € 3.14 million to Address Cybersecurity Expertise Shortage in Europe

The CADMUS consortium, comprised of 7 organisations based in Europe and including the Centre for Security and Digitalisation (CVD) and Security Delta (HSD) from The Netherlands, has received a 3-year grant to address the cybersecurity expertise shortage in Europe. The consortium is led by the Greece National Cybersecurity Authority. Aim of the granted project under the Cybersecurity Skills Academy is to upskill educators, trainers, SME, startup employees, civil servants as well as graduate students who target cybersecurity careers through hands-on experiences and theoretical background by building on existing initiatives. The consortium will use the grant to execute a € 6.3 million programme, expected to be co-funded amongst others by the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs/RVO.

The project will utilize existing initiatives and offers in cybersecurity training to build upon and develop enhanced training curricula based on integrating proven training models and standards. These may include cyber range projects, games, hackathons, bootcamps and traineeships. The project will contribute to the EU Cybersecurity Skills Academy call’s objectives by fostering a robust cybersecurity workforce, meeting sector-specific and legislative requirements, and addressing the needs of SMEs, startups, and public administrations.

This action strengthens several cybersecurity skill and talent development initiatives that take place under the Netherlands Cybersecurity Strategy 2022-2028, and will be closely linked to public and private parties in the Dutch cybersecurity innovation ecosystem.

Cybersecurity Skills Needs Analysis and Specification

Security Delta (HSD) and Centre for Security and Digitalisation (CVD) expect to receive a total funding of 980.000 euro and will lead the work package ‘Cybersecurity Skills Needs Analysis and Specification’ and contribute to project management and dissemination.

Mark Ruijsendaal, programme director HSD: We will identify and map existing European training initiatives relevant for SMEs and public administration in several countries based on competences. European training needs assessment and skills gap analysis will support further training requirements specifications”.

Ben Kokkeler, governour of CVD: “European cooperation in cybersecurity is of utmost importance. With this project, we support an open labour market for cybersecurity talent, employers and educators”.

Consortium

CVD and HSD will collaborate closely with the involved consortium partners

Ethniki Archi Kyvernoasfaleias (NCSA, Greece, coordinator), Institouto Technologias Ypologiston Kai Ekdoseon Diofantos (CTI, Greece), Sveuciliste Algebra (AU, Croatia), Archi Psifiakis Asfaleias (DSA, Cyprus) and European University Cyprus (EUC, Cyprus). The project has started on 1 December 2024.

Human Capital Agenda Security

This project is part of the Human Capital Agenda (HCA) Security and builds on the ongoing work in IT Verband Zuid Holland (ITVZH) programme amongst other. The HCA Security is developed by the Dutch security cluster Security Delta (HSD) in cooperation with the Centre for Security and Digitalisation (CVD). About 70 private and public parties have contributed to the creation of the HCA and its proposed interventions. With this broad involvement, the HCA Security lays the foundation for implementation and scaling up across the professional column and at regional and national levels.

For more information, please contact Mark Ruijsendaal or Mira van Benthem.