The Hungarian government is encouraging women to take up engineering training programs after figures revealed a shortfall in those participating in technical studies.
According to László Palkovics, the minister of state responsible for education at the Ministry of Human Capacities, the percentage of women studying in higher education is inline with the western European average at 53 percent, but more could be done to offer training courses and better vocational options.
“The government is helping the employment of women through training courses, and local municipalities have from 19 May until the depletion of the available budget or 21 May 2018 at the latest to submit their applications to participate in the program," he said.
Meanwhile, Katalin Novák, minister of state for Family, Youth and International Affairs in the Ministry of Human Capacities, said that local governments and consortiums led by local governments will be able to apply for 150-200 million HUF in funding for women.
The Hungarian government is spending a total of 9 billion HUF (29m EUR) on facilitating the atypical work and employment of women. Novák highlighted that the government will be establishing centers where women can take part in training courses that facilitate their flexible employment on the job market.
“Local employers and local non-governmental organizations will also be partners in the initiative," she added. “According to the latest figures, the employment of women in Hungary has almost caught up to the EU average, but that of mothers raising small children remains well below the European Union average," the minister added.