The French National Plan for Digital Inclusion (Plan national pour un numérique inclusif in French) was launched in September 2018 as a strategic action by the French State Secretary for Digital, part of the French National Agency for the Cohesion of Territories (ANCT).
Its aim is to support the digital transformation of businesses as well as the development of a safe and human-centric digital society in France. Objectives and priorities relate to the provision of support and training to 1,5 million people in topics relevant to digital technology and 21st century competences and combatting the digital divide. Another strong focus of the plan is achieving digital inclusion for at least one third of the French population over the next 10 years. According to the estimates of the Agency, this translates to equipping a total of 4,5 million French citizens with basic digital skills.
Actions under the French National Plan for Digital Inclusion are launched within the framework of the 2030 targets put forward by the European Commission's Digital Decade, which aims to see 80% of European citizens develop basic digital skills in the next decade. The national plan also operates within the context of the four pillars of the European Digital Skills and Jobs Coalition: digital skills for citizens, for the labour force, in education, and advanced skills for professionals in the information and communication technology (ICT) sector. Actions and upskilling initiatives target the following societal groups:
Digital skills for all citizens
- Training and reskilling people to develop basic digital skills and promote the use of digital technology for everyone.
- Support citizens and improve existing digital infrastructures.
- Strengthen capacity-building of all citizens and enable their participation in the digital society.
- Support people in difficulty, jobseekers and the unemployed, as well as disadvantaged societal groups, left behind digital innovation processes.
- Promote the use of the online public service PIX, which offers a self-assessment tool for evaluating one's digital competence.
- Creating and promoting the use of digital passes and credentials on national level.
Digital skills for the labour force
- Supporting the labour force through consistent investment in upskilling initiatives on digital skills.
- Promoting the need for businesses to invest in digital skills training so they can capitalise on economic spin-offs.
- Build digital resilience with a special focus on providing support to public sector employees and capacity-building for professionals engaged in the care sector.
- Coordinating and streamlining between local actors, stakeholders, and communities.
Other initiatives and actions launched within the French Strategic Plan aim to modernise existing education and vocational education and training (VET) systems and help institutions and students understand the type of skills required in the future, as well as training initiatives and projects which aim to support the development of advanced digital skills for professionals in the ICT sector and other digital experts.
The full French National Plan for Digital Inclusion is available in French.
Strategy Details
The State is mobilising €10 million to co-finance the rise in digital skills by making digital passes available to priority audiences because they are the furthest from digital. An additional €40 million euros will be mobilised by the private sector and local authorities. A state start-up call for co-financing, between 75 to 100 million euros per year, will help support and train 1,5 million people in digital technology and basic digital skills. Additional €5 million are planned for supporting local players in digital inclusion and enhancing collaboration with local authorities in order to leverage cohesion throughout France's regions. The French Plan for Digital Inclusion will also be supported by relevant financing programmes and mechanisms on EU level.
The French National Plan for Digital Inclusion mobilises a variety of stakeholders from the French Government, local and regional authorities, businesses and public sector employees.