Green and digitals skills development in Western Macedonia region

The Region of Western Macedonia in Greece represents one of Europe's most emblematic cases of transition-related vulnerability. For nearly seventy years the region functioned as the primary energy hub of Greece, hosting approximately 80% of national lignite mining capacity and contributing between 34% and 45% of regional gross value added at its peak. The Greek government's 2019 commitment to a complete lignite phase-out by 2028 has set in motion a profound socio-economic reconfiguration, unfolding against deep structural constraints: population declined by 10.3% between 2011 and 2021, lifelong learning participation stands at just 3–4%, and the region is classified as an "Emerging Innovator" under the Regional Innovation Scoreboard. The policy response is anchored in the Just Transition Development Plan (JTDP), supported by the Just Transition Fund, the Recovery and Resilience Facility, ESF+, and ERDF, and complemented by the SYNERGiNN European Digital Innovation Hub for SME digitalisation. This case study examines how policies supporting the twin green and digital transition interact with existing socio-economic inequalities, with a focus on employment dynamics, skills development, and access to emerging opportunities. The analysis demonstrates that the transition is shaped by deeply embedded inequalities across the policy cycle. Large-scale renewable energy investments generate lower employment intensity than the lignite sector and have limited local economic spillovers. Up to 50% of affected workers require reskilling, yet training programmes delivered through the Public Employment Service (DYPA) are not consistently aligned with actual labour demand. Access to funding is conditioned by administrative complexity — described by local stakeholders as a "technical race" — that systematically advantages institutionally stronger actors, while spatial concentration of investment and energy poverty risks from the disruption of lignite-based district heating further compound these dynamics.