The Parliament of the German-speaking Community on Monday approved a bill aimed at granting financial aid for training in labour-strapped professions.
Nineteen parliamentarians (ProDG, PFF, SP, Écolo and Vivant) voted in favour of the grant scheme, entitled ‘You and East Belgium – Training Aid for Professions in Short Supply.’ The CSP abstained.
The bill provides for an allowance of €350 per month to be allocated to all students and apprentices undergoing training in the German-speaking Community in professions that are in short supply, if they meet certain conditions.
The financial aid will be available throughout their higher education studies or from the 7th professional year. It is extended to medical and dental students who are residents of the German-speaking Community and study in Belgium or elsewhere in Europe.
The grant is non-refundable if recipients undertake to work at least half the time in the Community for a period of five years over a ten-year period.
Based on the list of professons in short supply – determined by the German-speaking Community’s employment agency – the government will determine annually which training and study courses will be eligible for the grant for the following school year.
The list of eligible courses for the 2023-2024 academic year and the practical arrangements for submitting applications will be presented on 27 June by Lydia Klinkenberg, the Community’s Minister for Education and Training.
