NITO celebrates industry programme in water and wastewater
" The government takes the skills gap in water and sewerage seriously. This is avictory," says NITO President Kjetil Lein.
The Government proposes the NOK 90 million for two industry programmes, one for water and sewerage and one for the security industry. Each program will receive NOK 15 million annually for the next three years.
"The government is now delivering on something NITO has been calling for for a long time, and which hits one of the clearest findings in NITO's own report "Against harsh weather": Expertise in water and wastewater is under pressure in the municipalities, and it is the small municipalities with the most vulnerable professional environments that are struggling the most.
NITO President Kjetil Lein
" A separate industry program for water and wastewater is an important step in building and retaining this expertise – not only in the big cities, but throughout the country. Because clean tap water and a drain that works depend on us having skilled professionals where people actually live," the NITO president adds .
Can build competence
The municipalities lack engineers who can handle climate change, new technology and increasingly stringent requirements for water supply. Now employees can build their skills alongside work.
" The industry programme must respond to what the municipalities are actually struggling with, such as pipeline networks, stormwater, digital management systems and new environmental requirements. And it must be possible to take them from small municipalities just as easily as from Oslo," says Lein.
- NITO is positive to the industry programmes as a scheme for skills development in working life, which involve the social partners in a good way and create new continuing and further education in areas that need them. At the same time, there is room for more programmes, more funding in the scheme and an increased time horizon," the NITO president elaborates.
These are the industry programs
The development of the education offer in water and sewerage and security and will start in the autumn of 2026. Employees in the water and wastewater industry are scheduled to have the opportunity to apply for education during 2027.
The aim of industry programmes is for the industries to gain access to relevant expertise, and for employees to be better equipped to face restructuring and to be able to remain in work.
There are seven ongoing industry programmes, which received a total of NOK 142 million in 2026, and NITO has contributed to several of these.
Active industry programs in 2026 are:
- Information security and ICT industry (2024-2026)
- Solar power industry (2025-2027)
- Manufacturing and construction (third period 2025-2027)
- Health and care services (2025-2027)
- Financial industry (2024-2026)
- Kindergarten sector (2026-2028)
- SFO sector (2026-2028)
