The Minister of National Defence, Nikos Dendias, and the Minister of Education, Religion, and Sports, Kyriakos Pierrakakis, announced a set of measures to deal with the decrease in admissions to the Higher Military Schools.

Mr. Dendias, presenting the problem, stated, among other things, that in 2020 the percentage of positions in the Higher Military Schools of the country was close to 99% and in 2024 it was reduced to 64%, while in particular in the Evelpidon Military School the percentage of coverage was 100% in 2020 and has been reduced to just 34%. He emphasized that, at the same time, there is an increasing dropout of students during the first year of study, stating that in 2020 the percentage was 6%, in 2021 it rose to 20%, in 2022 to 15%, in 2023 to 18%, and in 2024 to 7%.

The danger, according to the Minister of National Defence, is the understaffing of the Hellenic Armed Forces with the consequent inability to support modern weapon systems and the degradation of quality elements of the Hellenic Armed Forces.

As Mr. Pierrakakis said, the first interventions, in the context of the campaign to attract young people to the Hellenic Armed Forces, concern incentives that will make admission and study at the Military Schools more attractive, such as:

• Possibility of admission from three scientific fields and professional high schools
• Salary increase for military school students
• Improvement of building infrastructure and equipment
• New possibilities for research, specialization, and development.

Specializing, Mr. Dendias pointed out that regarding the increase in salaries of military school students, they quadruple the salaries of the students of the Higher Military Educational Institutions from 165 euros to 609 euros, while the salaries of the Higher Military Schools of non-commissioned officers are doubled from 124 to 249 euros. In addition, they will be granted a student pass, and study support funds as well as student benefits will be doubled.

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Regarding the modernization and upgrading of building infrastructure and equipment, projects amounting to 19.7 million euros will be carried out by the NSRF and the Public Investment Program in the School of Evelpidon, School of Icarus, School of Naval Cadets, School of Corps Officers, and School of Nursing Officers, while €18.1 million of donation upgrade projects for the classrooms, dormitories, library, dormitory, and recreation rooms at the Evelpidon School, the auditorium and dormitories of the Naval Cadet School, the restaurants and kitchens of the Icarus School, as well as the classrooms, restaurants, and kitchens of the Permanent Non-Commissioned Officer School shall take place.

With regard to the new possibilities for research, specialization, and development, doctoral degrees will be granted by the Higher Military Educational Institutions in cutting-edge fields; the connection of doctoral research with the Defence Innovation Ecosystem will proceed; postgraduate degrees will be granted by the School of National Defence and the Supreme Interdisciplinary School of War; the Supreme Military Educational Institutions will become Centers of Excellence; the institution of the Military Teaching and Training Staff will be established; and there will be an interface with HEIs in Greece and abroad.

The campaign to attract young people to the Hellenic Armed Forces includes an information campaign on career prospects in the Hellenic Armed Forces and targeted actions in schools, while actions are already being carried out, such as the number of students in the context of naval week and the use of Air Force flight simulators.

In the long term, Mr. Dendias announced that the actions that are being launched to make the Hellenic Armed Forces more attractive to young people concern new career opportunities with a new modern force structure, a new development system, a new fairer salary scale, a new transfer system with incentives, and the most technologically advanced and innovative environment.

With reference to the substantial support of the officers and their families, Mr. Dendias explained that regarding the provision of housing, a construction program of 1,000 homes is already underway with the goal of 3,000 homes in 2030. Also, the upgrading of the kindergartens, the Center for Special Developmental Care of Children for the treatment of developmental disorders of children of the Hellenic Armed Forces, the creation of a Shelter for Supported Living for the Disabled, and the utilization of the Disabled by the Armed Forces. 

In addition, medical care will be improved with the bill being finalized, while a Refugee Care Unit will be created to accommodate the vulnerable. For his part, Mr. Pierrakakis underlined that the first changes to the admission system will be made in 2026 and pledged that the student pass will also be granted to students of military schools.

With information from: AMNA

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