The Kick-Off-Meeting of the Interreg project REOPEN “Next Generation Workforce – Empowering Young People for Improved Employment” took place in a hybrid mode on 30th September 2025 in Riga, Latvia. It has been hosted by the University of Latvia. In total, about 20 persons attended the meeting. The REOPEN project funding is 1.2 MEuro (by Interreg Central Baltic Programme) and duration is 30 months (project officially started on 1 September 2025).

The agenda included Welcome and Introduction with opening remarks and brief overview of the REOPEN project objectives from the project coordinator (Inga Skendere) and project manager (Anda Paegle) from the Institutional Development Center of the University of Latvia. It continued with session on “Getting to Know Each Other: Partner Introductions” where participants introduced themselves in a round table. Partners/ members of the REOPEN consortium are the UL – University of Latvia (Riga, Latvia; www.lu.lv), UH – University of Helsinki (Helsinki, Finland; www.helsinki.fi), IBS – Institute of Baltic Studies (Tartu, Estonia; www.ibs.ee), LCCI – Latvian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Riga, Latvia; www.ltrk.lv), and SEE – Social Enterprise Estonia (Tallinn, Estonia; www.sev.ee).

The session (moderated by Anda Paegle) on “WP1: Joint targeted upskilling training for young people (YP)” included overview presentation about the REOPEN project, its specific objectives, planned activities, as well as expected outcomes/ results as deliverables/ reports. During the first six months (September 2025 – March 2026) of the project the focus is on WP1. The online educational courses/ Modules – (1) Soft skills and competences in 21st century labour market; (2) Digital and green skills for labour market; and (3) Internship onboarding training – are planned for YP. The specific objective of WP1 is to train 300 YP from Estonia, Latvia and Finland in soft skills, digital competencies, green skills and industry-specific knowledge to boost their competitiveness in the labour market. For achieving this it is critically important: (1) to implement an outreach campaign, engaging at least 300 YP and 15 SMEs/organizations across various industry sectors; (2) to identify existing workforce skill gaps and align them with YP training needs; and (3) to design and deliver a comprehensive upskilling training program in 3 Modules. Upon successful completion of each Module, YP will receive a Training Certificate (20 academic hours, 1 ECTS), certifying their qualification. The REOPEN target is 50% improvement in YP competency levels through pre- and post-training self-assessments, and, at least, 75% positive feedback on training relevance and effectiveness. In this sense, REOPEN project will help YP to reduce their skills gaps and enhance their adaptability to a rapidly changing labour market.

The overview presentation followed by detailed discussion on the structure and content of the activities of all partners, by clarifying expectations and objectives, and by discussion on each Partner’s role and contributions to the project and deadlines.

The next session on “Project management” included talk by Laura Cunska-Aboma, Project Manager from the Interreg Central Baltic. It included aspects of the project management, financial management, dissemination and reporting.

The REOPEN kick-off-meeting ended with a wrap up and additional questions/ answers. Moreover, the social part included a tour of the University of Latvia during lunch time and a social dinner for the REOPEN Partners on evening.

Hanna K. Lappalainen, Alexander Mahura (UHEL-INAR)