Greece Unveils Incentives to Lure Young Back to Military Schools
Source: Balkan Insight
Greece’s Ministers of Defence and Education on Thursday announced new measures to attract young people to military schools in a move to counter falling enrolment in the country’s Higher Military Schools,
High salaries, better facilities and new possibilities for career development are among the measures announced by the Defence Minister, Nikos Dendias, and the Education, Religious Affairs and Sports Minister, Kyriakos Pierrakakis, to make the armed forces more attractive to the young.
“We have tried together to approach this extremely important problem. I don’t think I need to expand on the importance for the country of the possibility of producing new members of the Armed Forces and what a huge problem the current situation creates, if it progresses over time,” said Dendias.
A press release issued on Thursday noted that while 99 per cent of positions in Greek military schools were filled in 2020, that figure fell to 64 per cent in 2024. At the Army Academy, 100 per cent of positions were filled in 2020 and just 34 per cent now.
At the same time, the dropout rate of military students during the first year of study has both risen and fallen. In 2020 the rate was 6 per cent. In 2021 it rose to 20 per cent. It fell to 15 per cent in 2022, rose to 18 per cent in 2023 and fell in 2024 to 7 per cent.
Ministers announced that students monthly salaries at Higher Military Educational Institutions will rise from 165 euros to 609 euros. At Higher Military Schools of Non-Commissioned Officers salaries will rise from 124 to 249 euros. In addition, they will be granted a student pass and study support and benefit funds will be doubled.
Admissions to military schools will be made possible from vocational high schools, while new possibilities for research, specialization and development will be provided – doctoral degrees, master’s degrees and collaboration of the schools with universities in Greece and abroad.
In addition, the government will modernize facilities and equipment in nine military schools, with 19.7 million euros coming from the National Strategic Reference Framework, NSRF, and Public Investment Programme, and 18.1 million euros from donations.
Among other things, it is reported that the construction of 1,000 new houses is underway with the goal of building 3,000 homes to support military personnel and their families by 2030.
The government will also upgrade day care and care centres to deal with children with developmental disorders, persons with disabilities and the overall provision of medical care.
The original article: Balkan Insight .
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