Tunis: The Ministry of Employment and Vocational Training on Tuesday organised a workshop dedicated to presenting the results of a sectoral study on the employment market's needs for occupations and skills in the information and communication technologies sector. According to Agence Tunis Afrique Presse, this study was conducted in collaboration with the Tunisian Observatory for Employment and Qualifications (ONEQ) and the International Labour Organisation (ILO), with funding from the European Union. It is part of a project aimed at establishing a national system for monitoring and forecasting employment market needs. Minister of Employment and Vocational Training Riadh Chaoued affirmed that the employment market has undergone rapid transformations due to technological and economic development, leading to a strong demand for a specialised workforce in the information and communication technologies sector, both nationally and internationally. He added that forecasting is now a necessity to enable stakeholde rs to make decisions that meet market requirements, ensuring a better alignment between human resources preparation and skills in economic enterprises in Tunisia and abroad. The Minister specified that this study is part of a series of sectoral studies launched by the Ministry, covering land transport, logistics, construction, and public works, to provide accurate data for developing public policies in training and employment in line with the economy's needs. He pointed out that the European market will need approximately 10 million specialists in the information and communication technologies sector by 2030, presenting an opportunity to develop Tunisian talent capable of meeting external demand. The results of this study revealed a gap between higher education and vocational training programmes and the skills required in the labour market, necessitating a revision of human resources training mechanisms. Chaoued mentioned a delay in revising educational curricula and creating new specialities, specifying that the Ministry is relying on short-term supplementary training to bridge the gap between basic training and enterprise requirements to "boost the employability of higher education and vocational training centre graduates." ONEQ Director General Fakher Zaibi indicated that the study has identified the most in-demand occupations and skills in the information and communication technologies sector, developing a map of the distribution of needs in five European countries: France, Italy, Germany, Belgium, and Luxembourg. He explained that this study has analysed current and future needs, which will help Tunisia steer vocational training and higher education policies towards specialities in high demand within the European Union. Zaibi added that the most in-demand occupations include software development, web application development, cloud engineering, data engineering, cybersecurity, and data protection, noting that these specialities have experienced growing demand, both nationally and internationally. He i ndicated that the information and communication technologies sector currently employs more than 100,000 specialists in Tunisia, noting a rapid pace of growth, which could offer new employment prospects for young people.