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Europaudvalget 2025
KOM (2025) 0290
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EUROPEAN

COMMISSION

Brussels, 16.6.2025

SWD(2025) 294 final

PART 22/27

COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT

Digital Decade 2025 country reports

Accompanying the document

Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council and the

European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions

State of the Digital Decade 2025: Keep building the EU's sovereignty and digital future

{COM(2025) 290 final} - {SWD(2025) 290 final} - {SWD(2025) 291 final} -

{SWD(2025) 292 final} - {SWD(2025) 293 final} - {SWD(2025) 295 final}

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DIGITAL DECADE 2025

COUNTRY REPORTS

Portugal

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Portugal

Contents

Executive summary

.................................................................................................................................

A competitive, sovereign and resilient EU based on technological leadership

......................................

Building technological leadership: digital infrastructure and technologies

........................................

Connectivity infrastructure

.............................................................................................................

Semiconductors

...............................................................................................................................

Edge nodes

......................................................................................................................................

Quantum technologies

....................................................................................................................

Supporting EU-wide digital ecosystems and scaling up innovative enterprises

.................................

SMEs with at least basic digital intensity

........................................................................................

Take-up of cloud/AI/data analytics

...............................................................................................

Unicorns, scale-ups and start-ups

.................................................................................................

Strengthening Cybersecurity & Resilience

........................................................................................

Protecting and empowering EU people and society

.............................................................................

Empowering people and bringing the digital transformation closer to their needs

........................

Equipping people with digital skills

...............................................................................................

Key digital public services and solutions – trusted, user-friendly, and accessible to all

...............

Building a safe and human centric digital environment and preserving our democracy

.................

Leveraging digital transformation for a smart greening

.......................................................................

Annex I – National roadmap analysis

....................................................................................................

Annex II – Factsheet on multi-country projects (MCPs) and funding

...................................................

Annex III – Digital rights and principles

.................................................................................................

Portugal

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Portugal

Executive summary

Portugal records stable growth in digital public services and performs particularly well on access to

e-health records. It faces challenges with artificial intelligence (AI) adoption by enterprises and their

capacity to innovate as well as basic digital skills but can rely on solid connectivity networks.

Portugal shows a high level of ambition in its contribution to the Digital Decade having set 12

national targets, 92% of which aligned with the EU 2030 targets. The country is following its

trajectories very well with 100% of them being on track (considering 2024 trajectories defined for 7

KPIs out of 8 analysed). Portugal addressed 77% of the 13 recommendations issued by the

Commission in 2024 by making some changes through new measures.

In 2024 Portugal noted progress in all measured indicators, with its digital networks almost covering

the full territory. The

National Digital Strategy

adopted in December 2024 announced ambitious plans

regarding AI, data sharing, sovereign cloud and simplification through digital tools. However, while at

least basic digital intensity of SMEs is slightly above the EU average, AI adoption by enterprises remains

weak, and the scale-up support for start-ups is limited. On the other hand, the growing availability and

use of digital public services for citizens and businesses, as well as the significant improvement in

access to e-health records create a blueprint to build on. While basic digital skills remain unevenly

distributed across society, more people acquired advanced digital skills, including in areas such as

cybersecurity. Portugal is also involved in EU-wide cooperation in semiconductors and quantum

technologies.

Portugal

National

trajectory

2024 (3)

94.2%

92.3%

98.1%

4.5%

Digital Decade

target by 2030

Annual

progress

4.9%

8.4%

5.9%

90.5%

2.8%

67.2%

4.4%

4.2%

Digital Decade KPI

(1)

Fixed Very High Capacity Network (VHCN) coverage

Fibre to the Premises (FTTP) coverage

Overall 5G coverage

Edge Nodes (estimate)

SMEs with at least a basic level of digital intensity (2)

Cloud

Artificial Intelligence

Data analytics

AI or Cloud or Data analytics

Unicorns

At least basic digital skills

ICT specialists

Eid scheme notification

Digital public services for citizens

Digital public services for businesses

Access to e-Health records

DESI

2024

(year

2023)

94.2%

92.3%

98.1%

32.3%

7.9%

38.6%

54.4%

56.0%

4.6%

DESI

2025

(year

2024)

94.6%

93.2%

98.7%

74.3%

8.6%

5.2%

Yes

Annual

progress

0.4%

0.9%

0.6%

92.9%

2.7%

9.8%

0.0%

13.0%

DESI 2025

82.5%

69.2%

94.3%

2257

72.9%

13.5%

286

5.0%

100.0%

90.0%

75.0%

80.0%

7.0%

100%

10000

90%

75%

500

80%

~10%

81.5

81.9

86.0

84.5

84.3

88.1

3.6%

2.9%

2.4%

81.5

81.9

86.0

82.3

86.2

82.7

3.6%

0.9%

4.5%

100.0

100

(1) See the methodological note for the description of the indicators and other metrics

(2) DESI 2025 reports the version 4 of the Digital Intensity Index, that is comparable with the DII value from DESI 2023 (referring to year 2022) for the

calculation of the annual progress. It is not comparable to the national trajectory that is based on version 3 of the index.

(3) National trajectory value if present in the national roadmap and if the indicator was measured in DESI2025 (year 2024)

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Portugal

According to the special Eurobarometer on ‘the Digital Decade’ 2025,

71% of Portuguese citizens

consider that the digitalisation of daily public and private services is making their lives easier. On the

action of the public authorities, 89% consider it important to counter and mitigate the issue of fake

news and disinformation online, and on competitiveness, 89% consider it important to ensure that

European companies can grow and become ‘European Champions’ capable of competing globally.

A competitive, sovereign, and resilient EU based on technological leadership

Portugal enjoys robust connectivity infrastructure, with stable progress across the indicators and

almost full 5G coverage. However, broadband and mobile take up are mostly lower than the EU average

and so is 5G pioneer bands spectrum assignment. To engage more under the ‘Chips for Europe’

initiative, Portugal has set up a national chips competence centre. The country provides some

contribution to European quantum initiatives. SMEs record at least basic digital intensity slightly above

the EU average, but the take-up of AI by enterprises remains modest. Ambitious plans regarding

sovereign digital solutions, such as AI development and cloud, and boosting the innovation ecosystem

are partly supported by funding under the recovery and resilience plan. The country plans to increase

the number of start-ups from just over 4 700 in 2024 to 6 000 by 2030 with anticipated spillover on

the number of unicorns, as Portugal currently hosts only one such company. For Portuguese start-ups,

access to funding at further growth stages remains an issue. The cybersecurity awareness of people

and companies is growing, in part thanks to strong efforts by and the collaborative spirit of the

authorities. However, NIS2 Directive still awaits transposition and implementation into national law.

Protecting and empowering EU people and society

Basic digital skills remain in the EU average, with significant gaps for people with lower levels of

education and older people. However, in 2024 Portugal noted promising progress in the share of ICT

specialists, including female ones. Some programmes are starting to promote gender convergence in

this area but advanced digital skills are not prominent in Portugal’s roadmap. Robust digital skills are,

however, promoted in public administration, notably due to investments from Portugal’s recovery and

resilience plan. The country shows good progress on digital government, with visibly more people

using such solutions and digital public services for citizens remain at high level. With a single Gov.pt

app, digital identity might gain momentum. In addition, access to e-health records progressed rapidly

over the last years, making Portugal one of the frontrunners. This might also be linked to the RRF

investment in digital health transition. However, some challenges persist as digital services for

businesses are below the EU average, in particular in cross-border context. Media literacy and child

protection receive growing attention.

Leveraging digital transformation for a smart greening

Green and digital priorities are slowly gaining attention. With RRF support, Portugal is implementing a

Digital and Smart Nation agenda, which envisages the creation of Urban Management Platforms and

digital twins. These will leverage vast data on territories, as well as connectivity solutions, to respond

to territorial challenges, including environmental and climate ones.

National digital decade strategic roadmap

Portugal submitted a fully revised national Digital Decade roadmap in December 2024, (with targeted

adjustments until March 2025) containing more than 150 measures, including many new ones, revised

targets and, for the first time, more than half of the required trajectories. It is largely based on the

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Portugal

National Digital Strategy

and its action plan, on which stakeholders were consulted. The updates are

aligned with the new Commission’s priorities on AI, sovereignty and digital skills. The revised roadmap

includes reporting on the consultation of stakeholders and addresses a substantial number of roadmap

recommendations issued in 2024. Most targets align with the EU level goals for 2030, except for 7%

target for ICT specialists (instead of 10%) by 2030. The revised roadmap continues to prioritise digital

skills, digital public administration and the digitalisation of businesses. It is composed of 157 measures

with a budget of EUR 2.15 billion, equivalent to 0.75% of GDP. The roadmap responds to majority of

objectives, such as human-centred digital transformation, simplification, sovereignty and resilience.

However, areas such as sustainability and inclusion lack specific focus, while competitiveness is not

comprehensively covered.

Funding & projects for digital

Portugal allocates 21% of its total recovery and resilience plan to digital (EUR 4.5 billion)

. In addition,

under cohesion policy, EUR 2.4 billion, representing 11% of the country’s total cohesion policy funding,

is dedicated to advancing Portugal’s digital transformation

.Portugal is a member of the Local Digital

Twins towards the Citi VERSE EDIC and of the EUROPEUM EDIC. Portuguese entities are indirect and/or

associated partners in the IPCEI on Microelectronics and Communication Technologies (IPCEI-ME/CT).

Portugal is also a participating state of the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking (JU) and of the Chips JU.

Portugal has contributed to the Best Practice Accelerator

by sharing one best practice in the frame of

the Green IT cluster (National Strategy for Smart Territories).

Digital rights and principles

According to a support study, Portugal has been one of the most active Member States in

implementing the

European Declaration on Digital Rights and Principles,

with over 100 initiatives

overall and 14 new initiatives launched in 2024. Portugal is most active in the

Declaration

area of digital

education, training and skills. Less activity has been identified with regards to privacy and individual

control over data. Measures in the area of freedom of choice appear to have most impact on the

ground, in contrast to those addressing participation in the digital public space.

The share of financial allocations that contribute to digital objectives has been calculated using Annex VII to the Recovery

and Resilience Facility Regulation. Last data update: 16 May 2025.

This amount includes all investment specifically aimed at or substantially contributing to digital transformation in the 2021-

2027 Cohesion policy programming period. The source funds are the European Regional Development Fund, the Cohesion

Fund, the European Social Fund Plus, and the Just Transition Fund.

The Best Practice Accelerator (BPA) is a platform that enables Member States to share successful measures and challenges

encountered in their efforts to meet their Digital Decade targets and objectives. Best practices are made available to Member

States via the BPA Repository and showcased in regular workshops, currently focused on three thematic clusters: Digital Skills,

Green IT, and the Uptake of Digital Technologies.

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Recommendations

Artificial Intelligence:

Support AI take-up and thus enable innovation by enterprises, including

by timely implementation of ongoing and planned measures.

Basic digital skills:

Evaluate the take-up of the current measures and identify ways to address

the remaining needs, notably to tackle the digital divide in the society.

Basic digital intensity of SMEs and advanced technologies:

Support the adoption of advanced

digital technologies by businesses by fostering enhanced collaboration between public and

private sector and academia and by identifying support measures for the medium-term.

Cloud:

Encourage cloud take-up, in particular implement the plans for sovereign cloud

infrastructure.

ICT specialists:

Identify ways to attract ICT specialists, promote ICT studies, digital upskilling

and reskilling options, and continue reinforcing gender balance in the field.

Green:

Consider introducing a coherent approach to twinning the digital and green transitions.

Scale-ups and unicorns:

Continue improving the business environment and access to finance

for digital start-ups to grow into scale-ups, including by targeting business R&D with public

support.

Semiconductors:

Continue efforts in semiconductors and strive towards leadership at EU level.

5G:

Consider assigning remaining 5G pioneer bands and promoting 5G take-up.

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Portugal

A competitive, sovereign and resilient EU

based on technological leadership

Portugal’s policymakers are paying increasing attention to digital technologies as an enabler for

competitiveness.

The recent National Digital Strategy stresses the need for innovative companies

driven by digital technologies, in particular trustworthy artificial intelligence (AI). In addition, Portugal’s

national recovery and resilience plan (RRP) gives significant attention to the digitalisation of

businesses, the digitalisation of science, and boosting innovation potential.

However, there remain some challenges.

Portuguese enterprises have only average levels of digital

intensity and uptake of advanced digital technologies, with modest growth in AI in 2024. In 2023,

spending on national research and development (R&D) was 1.7% of GDP, up from 1.3% in 2017

but

far below Portugal’s 2030 goal of 3%

. Such level R&D spending results in limited innovation and

productivity potential.

The characteristics of Portuguese enterprises may account for some of their challenges in adopting

digital technologies.

SMEs account for approximately 97.8% of the country’s enterprises with more

than 10 employees, while large enterprises make up only 2.2% of such enterprises. Portugal’s ICT

sector accounted for 4.47% of gross value added in 2021 (no newer data)

, lower than the EU average

of 5.46%. R&D in the ICT sector accounted for 24.21% of total R&D expenditure by Portuguese

businesses in 2023, slightly more than in 2022. Also in 2023, 25.7% of total R&D personnel in Portugal

worked in the ICT sector, similar to 2022 (25.74%) but down from 27.27% in 2021.

Despite these tendencies, other factors contribute to Portugal’s growing digital leadership.

The

country’s digital infrastructures are a solid asset for citizens and businesses, and citizens and

businesses could be incentivised to rely on these to build innovative business applications. In addition,

Portugal is engaged in some actions and pilot lines under the European Chips Act and European

quantum initiatives. Cybersecurity culture is also growing among enterprises, the general public, and

the public administration. Finally, the number of Portuguese start-ups has risen, however, the country

still has one unicorn, with two potential ones on the horizon

Building technological leadership: digital infrastructure and technologies

Portugal excels in VHCN, FTTP, and overall 5G coverage, both measured nationally and when looking

at households in sparsely populated areas.

5G coverage in the 3.4–3.8 GHz band is higher than the

EU average, but the assignment of pioneer bands spectrum is below that average. On take-up, the

country leads in fixed broadband subscriptions at speeds of 100 Mbps or more, but remains behind

the EU average in 1 Gbps subscriptions and 5G SIM card adoption.

2025 European Semester Portugal country report, Innovation, business environment and productivity.

2024 European Semester Portugal country report,

‘Further priorities ahead’, p. 15.

Most of the indicators mentioned in the country report are explained in the DESI 2025 Methodological Note accompanying

the State of the Digital Decade report 2025.

On the date of data extraction in March 2025, see the DESI Methodological Note for details.

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Portugal

Connectivity infrastructure

In 2024 Portugal’s VHCN coverage for all households was at 94.59% and increased by 0.4% compared

with 2023, significantly higher than the EU average of 82.49% (2030 national target 100%).

The

country is on track according to its national trajectory. For households in sparsely populated areas,

Portugal’s VHCN coverage of 73.2% was also higher than the EU average of 61.89%, although Portugal’s

rate of year-on-year growth for VHCN coverage in sparsely populated areas from 2023 to 2024 of 2.5%

was slower than the EU average growth rate of 11.3%.

FTTP coverage stood at 93.18% in 2024 (2030 national target: 100%), after a progression of 0.9%.

This was much higher than the EU average of 69.24%.

The country is on track according to its national

trajectory. For households in sparsely populated areas, Portugal’s FTTP coverage was also higher than

the EU average, at 70.13% in 2024, compared with the EU’s 58.78%. However, here too Portugal’s

growth rate in FTTP coverage for households in sparsely populated areas was only 2.1% between 2023

and 2024, much lower than the EU’s 11.9%.

At 98.72% in 2024 (2030 national target 100%), after a progression of 0.6%, Portugal’s 5G coverage

was higher than the EU average of 94.35%.

The country is on track according to its national trajectory.

For households in sparsely populated areas, 5G coverage was also higher than the EU average, at

92.26% in 2024, compared with the EU’s 79.57%. Portugal’s growth rate for 5G coverage in sparsely

populated areas between 2023 and 2024 of 5.5% was lower than the EU’s 11.9%. 5G coverage in the

3.4–3.8 GHz band for all Portuguese households was higher than the EU average, at 71.38% in 2024,

compared with the EU’s 67.72% but grew more slowly between 2023 and 2024 at only 9.5% (compared

with the EU growth rate of 32.6%). For households in sparsely populated areas, Portugal’s 5G coverage

in the 3.4–3.8 GHz band was lower than the EU average, at 21.45% in 2024, compared with the EU’s

26.19%, showing similar growth rate (PT: 61.6%, EU: 65.1%). In 2025, the country’s assignment of 5G

pioneer bands spectrum was at 61.11% (unchanged from 2024), lower than the EU average of 74.63%.

Indicators of broadband and mobile take-up show a mixed performance compared with the EU

average.

In 2024, 91.62% of fixed broadband subscriptions in Portugal were at speeds of 100 Mbps or

more, ahead of the EU’s 71.88%. Nevertheless, the growth rate for this indicator between 2023 and

2024 in Portugal was 2.1%, which is lower than the EU’s 9.1%. For fixed broadband subscriptions at

speeds of 1 Gbps or more, Portugal’s take-up in 2024 was at 15.15%, below the EU’s 22.25%. Portugal’s

growth rate of 67.0% in this area outperformed the EU’s 20.5%. On the share of 5G SIM cards, these

constituted 27.49% of all SIM cards in Portugal in 2024, lower than the EU’s 35.56%. Portugal’s growth

rate of 54.7% on this indicator was also lower than the EU’s 63.9%.

VHCN and FTTP

In its adjusted roadmap, Portugal proposed new targets to reach 100% coverage for VHCN and FTTP

by 2030, in line with the recommendation set out in the 2024 State of the Digital Decade report.

Given the good rate of progress and the measures put in place by Portugal, this target seems

achievable.

Portugal’s revised roadmap includes some measures on fixed connectivity.

As reported last year, to

achieve gigabit connectivity for all, in late 2023 the Portuguese government launched a public tender

for the installation, management and operation of VHCN providing download speeds of at least 1 Gbps

and upload speeds of at least 150 Mbps in white areas. More than 400 000 residences and business

establishments should be covered by this investment which seeks to achieve full coverage of these

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areas by 2026/2027. Work on the project began in 2025, and the total investment of EUR 425 million

is co-financed by public funds.

Portugal’s copper switch-off process is underway.

It started in 2019 and will end in 2030. According

to the most recent data provided by ANACOM, Portugal’s regulatory authority for electronic

communications, active copper lines account for 2% of total broadband lines in Portugal.

With its Atlantic coastline and two outermost regions (Azores and Madeira), submarine cables are

important digital infrastructures to ensure the security and sovereignty of Portugal and the EU.

These autonomous regions are served by a domestic system of submarine cables known as CAM Ring,

which are becoming obsolete and need to be replaced. To address this structural need, the Atlantic

CAM (Global Project) is being planned, comprising a ring system of submarine cables with six fibre-

optic pairs, including innovative integrated SMART component for seismic detection, environmental

monitoring, underwater nautical activity detection and data transmission for scientific purposes. Its

deployment, supported in 2024 with EUR 14.3 million from the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF), will

contribute these goals while simultaneously: providing high-speed data-transfer capabilities and

secure and reliable communication channels and reducing the dependence of the outermost regions

on non-European countries for critical digital infrastructure.

In its adjusted roadmap, Portugal proposed a new target to achieve 100% 5G coverage by 2030, in

line with the recommendation set out in the 2024 State of the Digital Decade report.

Given the good

rate of progress and the measures put in place by Portugal, this target seems achievable.

Recent market dynamics have worked to the benefit of end users.

In November 2024, a new operator

entered the mobile market, pressuring the three major incumbent operators to provide a similar

service by offering subscriptions with larger data volumes and lower prices, adjusting their bundled

offers, and shortening their minimum contract periods.

The country is working on unleashing the full potential of 5G, including in rural areas and for specific

sectors.

In February 2025, ANACOM, , published a public consultation report on future procedures for

allocating spectrum band. The report concluded that it may be justified to soon make available the

spectrum that remained unallocated in the 5G auction (2x5 MHz), and possibly make it available before

other frequency bands. The country is also involved in projects using connectivity for social

empowerment. For example, ‘5G for rural smart communities of tomorrow’ (5G.RURAL) is an ongoing

CEF-supported project (with EUR 4 million) to deploy smart 5G-based community services in six

municipalities of the Alentejo region, with a focus on healthcare, education, energy efficiency,

agriculture, art, culture and tourism. Healthcare connectivity is also being supported through ‘5G in

Healthcare – Northern Region (PT) (5G

Healthcare (PT))’,

a CEF project to unleash 5G in this sector

through actions such as connected emergency vehicles, remote training, and support for diagnosis and

the internet of things (IoT) for a health-monitoring environment.

2024 recommendation on connectivity infrastructure:

Ensure sufficient access of new players to

spectrum for innovative business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-consumer (B2C) applications and

encourage operators to speed up the deployment of 5G stand-alone core networks.

Portugal made some efforts to address the recommendation through new policy actions in 2024.

ANACOM is in discussions with operators to identify specific 5G use cases, and the public consultation

report referred to above also helped businesses to better understand possible use cases for certain

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5G spectra. In 2024, one of Portugal’s telecoms operators

launched 5G standalone

as part of its offer,

while another installed a

5G standalone private mobile network

to bring digitalisation to the cement

sector.

Semiconductors

Semiconductors are becoming a priority for Portugal.

The 2023

National Strategy for Semiconductors

aims to empower Portugal in this sector through involving all interested parties, such as researchers

and industry, and identify complementarities and synergies at national level. The country is involved

under the European Chips Act. For example, Portuguese stakeholders participate in two of the EU’s

Chips Joint Undertaking pilot lines (APECS and PIXEurope). In addition, Portugal’s national Foundation

for Science and Technology (FCT) continues to co-fund the research and innovation (R&I) projects of

the Electronic Components and Systems (ECS) component of the Chips Joint Undertaking and will also

co-fund the Portuguese Competence Centre in Semiconductors of the Initiative component of the

Chips Joint Undertaking.

To build sovereignty, Portugal is setting up a national competence centre in semiconductors under

the

Chips for Europe Initiative.

Following a 2024 call, POEMS, a Portuguese consortium was awarded

the contract to coordinate the centre. The consortium is led by the Braga-based International Iberian

Nanotechnology Laboratory and is composed of 17 national entities such as universities, research

centres and companies. Already operational, the competence centre provides access to technical

expertise and experimentation in the area of semiconductors, helping companies to improve design

capabilities and develop their skills. It offers or will offer services to semiconductor stakeholders,

including start-ups and SMEs, and form part of the European network of competence centres in

semiconductors.

2024 recommendation on semiconductors:

Continue efforts in the area of semiconductors including

by proposing concrete actions and exploring synergies between the national strategy and the EU-level

cooperation.

Portugal made some efforts to address the recommendation through new policy actions in 2024.

Notably, the country has established the national chips competence centre and participates in calls

issued by the Chips Joint Undertaking (see above).

Edge nodes

According to the EU’s Edge Node Observatory, Portugal is estimated to have deployed 27 edge nodes

by 2024, 92.9% more than in 2023.

This is almost twice the amount that Portugal is estimated to have

deployed in 2023 (Portugal had originally been estimated to have deployed 14 edge nodes in 2023,

although this number was revised since the 2024 State of the Digital Decade report). The country did

not propose a 2030 target in this regard, nor did it suggest a strategy for the deployment of edge

nodes.

Quantum technologies

Portuguese stakeholders are engaged in projects related to quantum technologies, including at

European level.

EuroHPC supercomputer Deucalion, based in Guimarães, became fully operational in

May 2024 and received approximately 100 projects by and the end of 2024. In addition, the first users

are now testing the quantum computing simulator software installed at Deucalion. With the

Portuguese quantum communications project/PTQCI,

led by the

National Security Office (GNS)

the

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country is active in the European Quantum Communication Infrastructure (EuroQCI) initiative, which

aims to implement secure communications networks for EU public administrations.

Portugal’s roadmap adjustment refers to the country’s participation in EuroQCS-Spain,

a new

quantum system to complement the existing quantum computer installed in the Barcelona

Supercomputing Centre. In addition, Portugal’s national Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT)

will help Portuguese researchers apply for resources in the EuroHPC Quantum Computers network.

FCT also participates in

QuantERA,

a project dedicated to R&I in quantum technologies.

Supporting EU-wide digital ecosystems and scaling up innovative enterprises

Businesses in Portugal are making greater use of digital technology, but the acceleration of this

process could bring further benefits to the country’s economy.

The basic digital intensity of SMEs in

Portugal has grown steadily in recent years. The adoption of cloud computing, data analytics, and AI

technologies in Portugal has been mixed compared with EU averages. For example, the adoption of

data analytics in Portugal has exceeded the EU average but AI adoption – trailed behind the EU average

and annual growth. There is also a clear disparity in technology adoption between Portuguese SMEs

and the country’s large enterprises, with large enterprises exhibiting significantly higher adoption rates

across all three technologies. With SMEs representing the vast majority of enterprises in Portugal, their

comparatively lower uptake rates for digital tools point to a need for targeted initiatives to accelerate

digital transformation. The number of start-ups is growing, but innovation funding remains an issue.

On a positive note, the 2025 Eurobarometer

showed that 87% of Portuguese people think that public

authorities should prioritise shaping the development of AI and other digital technologies to ensure

that they respect our rights and values. It represents an increase of 8 percentage points compared to

last year, reflecting the growing interest of the citizens at this aspect.

SMEs with at least basic digital intensity

In 2024, 3 out of 4 (74.26%) SMEs in Portugal had at least a basic level of digital intensity (2030

national target 90%), thus outpacing the EU average of 72.91%.

This followed an annual growth rate

of 2.7% between 2022 and 2024. More specifically, 36.98% of SMEs in Portugal in 2024 had high or

very high digital intensity, above the EU average of 32.66%. Overall, this reveals good digital

engagement and steady growth in digital intensity among Portuguese SMEs.

Portugal still aims for 90% of its SMEs to reach at-least-basic digital intensity by 2030, in line with

the EU target for 2030.

The country continues to implement investments under its RRP, in particular

under component 16 on the digitalisation of enterprises. Examples of these investments include Digital

Commerce Neighbourhoods, Digital Innovation Hubs and digital test beds (mostly in specific business

sectors). A noteworthy measure, also highlighted in the roadmap, is ‘More Digital Leader’, supported

with EUR 9 million in EU funding. This project aims to give digital training to managers and senior staff

in SMEs, in particular women, and bundle this training with an implementation plan for the digital

transformation of companies.

Portugal’s revised roadmap gathers existing and upcoming initiatives to encourage enterprises to

make greater use of digital technology as part of broader efforts to increase competitiveness while

simplifying and reducing administrative burden for companies.

For example,

Espaço Empresa

is a

support service for companies that also involves assistance in digital public services. Portugal plans for

it to become a single point of access to information, including on EU funds, that can also promote

Special Eurobarometer 566 on ‘the Digital Decade’ 2025:

https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/news-redirect/883227

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simplified online communication between public administrations and businesses. Another measure

referred to the in revised roadmap is the

Entrepreneur App,

a mobile application for entrepreneurs to

help them find resources and participate in a community that promotes growth and the sharing of

knowledge, contacts and feedback.

In addition, Portugal has 17 digital innovation hubs in place across the country,

16 of which are

connected within the European Digital Innovation Hubs network.

These hubs provide testing,

training, funding and incubation support across sectors and technologies, e.g. in mobility, health, AI

and cybersecurity.

2024 recommendation on the digitalisation of SMEs:

Intensify the existing measures in view of the

ambitious target on the basic digital intensity of enterprises and the need to ensure continuity of

support until 2030.

Portugal continued to implement existing measures in this area in 2024, but did not take any new

measures to address the recommendation.

The adjusted roadmap provided a more comprehensive

picture of existing support. It also suggested some wider measures to facilitate access to information

on digitalisation and enable unbureaucratic, digital interaction between the State and companies (see

above). However, the potential effect of these measures on the digitalisation of SMEs remains to be

fully evaluated over time and the existing measures were not intensified.

Take-up of cloud/AI/data analytics

According to 2024 data, 8.63% of enterprises in Portugal adopted AI (2030 national target 75%),

remaining behind the EU average (13.48%). Portugal saw only modest increase since last year (9.8%),

especially in the light of the average EU-level growth rate of 67.2%.

The country did not provide a

national trajectory point for 2024. While SMEs’ uptake of AI in 2024 was 7.87%, large enterprises

reported a significantly higher rate of 41.89%. This corresponds to a gap of 34.02 percentage points

(pp.) between SMEs and large enterprises, which is higher than the EU gap of 28.53 pp.

Adoption by enterprises of cloud, data analytics, and the three technologies together were not

measured in 2024.

In 2023, the uptake of cloud in Portugal reached 32.29% of all businesses (2030 national target 75%),

below the EU-level uptake of 38.97%.

More specifically, SMEs exhibited an adoption rate of 31.44%,

while large enterprises had a higher uptake of 70.46%. This created a gap of 39.02 pp. in uptake

between SMEs and large enterprises in Portugal, which exceeded the EU-level gap of 31.68 pp.

Data analytics was performed by 38.56% of enterprises in 2023, surpassing the EU average of

33.25%.

Among these, 37.81% SMEs used data analytics, compared with a much higher share of large

enterprises (71.73%). This corresponds to a gap of 33.92 pp. in engagement between SMEs and large

enterprises, which is lower than the EU gap of 39.72 percentage points.

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When taking the three technologies together in 2023, 54.4% of enterprises in Portugal engaged with

either AI, cloud, or data analytics, which was roughly in line with the EU average of 54.7%.

The uptake

among SMEs was slightly lower at 53.68%, while large enterprises had a higher rate of 86.53%. This

indicates a difference of 32.85 pp. in uptake between SMEs and large enterprises in Portugal, which is

in line with the EU-level gap.

•

Cloud

Following the 2024 recommendation, Portugal has set a target of 75% enterprises adopting cloud

solutions by 2030, in line with the EU target.

This goal remains ambitious given Portugal’s current

pace of development in this area.

The revised roadmap included some new measures to support the achievement of this ambitious

target.

In 2025, the government will prepare a development plan on sovereign cloud infrastructure to

provide national cloud services to public administration and businesses. Another important measure

planned by Portugal is its ‘Collaborative Hub for Digital’ platform to facilitate interaction between

public clients and innovation suppliers of digital solutions. This RRF-funded platform will build on both

Portugal’s existing

Innovation Portal,

where 1 200+ entities from the national innovation ecosystem

are already listed; and the Portuguese platform for the

public procurement of innovation.

Starting from

March 2025, the Collaborative Hub for Digital will create the infrastructure to enable comprehensive

matchmaking of digital innovation procurement needs in the public sector with technology offerings

from the private sector. The Collaborative Hub for Digital should also foster collaborations and

synergies with Portugal’s collaborative laboratories (CoLABs; see below), technology and innovation

centres (CTIs), technological free zones (ZLTs), test beds, sandboxes, and common data spaces.

•

Data Analytics

Portugal has not set a 2030 target for the usage of data analytics.

No measures in Portugal’s roadmap

directly targeted the promotion of data analytics solutions among enterprises. However, because data

analytics provide the tools and methodologies necessary to harness the power of data, it will be

indispensable for the development, implementation, and refinement of AI systems, actions which are

at the heart of Portugal’s new digital agenda.

•

Artificial Intelligence

Following the 2024 recommendation, Portugal has set a target of 75% of its enterprises using AI by

2030.

Looking at the current rate of progress, this target seems very ambitious.

However, both the roadmap adjustment and the National Digital Strategy give attention to the

development and implementation of AI.

One new flagship initiative set out in the roadmap

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adjustment is the development of a

Portuguese large language model called Amalia,

which will: (i)

help preserve national sovereignty; (ii) distinguish the different variants of the Portuguese language;

and (iii) recognise aspects of the culture and history of Portugal. Amalia will also make it possible to

control the data used for training the AI, and ensure conditions for the storage and use of sensitive

data. Another AI project in which Portugal is involved, are AI Factories. In this context, Portuguese

stakeholders, including businesses, will be able to access computing capacity on the Mare Nostrum 5

supercomputer in Barcelona. Both actions (the development of Amalia and Portugal’s participation in

the AI Factory) will be supported through the RRF under the ‘More Digital Science’ component thanks

to the revision of the plan adopted in May 2025.

Some of the initiatives taken in recent years bring opportunities to build up the AI ecosystem in

Portugal.

Portugal’s

Centre for Responsible AI

is a consortium of start-ups, R&D centres and industry

leaders that seeks to create synergies, benefit from the sharing knowledge on AI and develop products

that respond to real market needs. In addition, the RRP investment ‘Interface mission’ (RE-C05-i02)

aims to increase cooperation between academia and companies, in particular through support for the

revitalisation of infrastructures that promote the transfer of knowledge and technology. As part of this

RRP investment, funding is being directed to three

Collaborative Laboratories

focused on data and AI

(Data CoLAB, DTx, Vortex) and 17 collaborative laboratories using AI in sectoral applications; and (iii)

to 16 Interface Centres using AI in sectoral applications.

2024 recommendation on AI/cloud/data analytics:

(i) Envisage specific measures for the take up of

cloud, AI and data analytics, such as reinforced collaboration between public and private sector and

with academia to better match the potential of these technologies with the business needs.

Portugal made some efforts to address the recommendation through new policy actions in 2024.

addition to implementing its RRP, Portugal has put AI innovation and data infrastructures on its agenda

by making use of existing funding possibilities. However, the effects of these actions remain to be seen.

Cooperation between businesses and academia remains underexploited

, although there are some

opportunities in this area, for example the AI Factory and the future collaborative hubs.

Unicorns, scale-ups and start-ups

At the start of 2025, Portugal hosted one unicorn company which is the same number as in previous

year.

Two companies were identified as potential unicorns. The country has maintained its target to

double this number by 2030. As the National Digital Strategy includes a target to have at least 6 000

start-ups by that year, this might also support the emergence of potential unicorns. The number of

mapped start-ups in Portugal has increased strongly, rising from 3 700 in 2022 to over 4 700 in 2024.

The revised roadmap introduced a new measure, namely, in November 2024 the Deep2Start

programme was announced.

This programme aims to promote the development of ‘deep tech’

projects and start-ups with high potential for disruptive technological innovation in Portugal. The

programme consists of two parts, one aimed at early-stage research and the other aimed at

commercialising slightly more mature research. The first part is a deep-tech fund with EUR 50 million

in public funding, with private investment expected to add another EUR 50 million to reach a total of

100 million through

Banco Português de Fomento,

the major promoter of financing programmes and

co-investment initiatives. This first part seeks to fund early-stage research in technology. The second

part is EUR 10.6 million of additional public funding, distributed in conjunction with the

ANI,

Portugal

2025 European Semester Portugal country report, Annex ‘Innovation to business’.

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Ventures and

Startup Portugal. This second part seeks to attract

private investment from ‘ignition’

funds which seek to: (i) transfer and increase the flow of technological and scientific knowledge from

academia to the business ecosystem; and (ii) support start-ups in the early stages of financing. This

second part will also distribute ‘vouchers’ to help deep-tech projects to apply for funding from the

European Innovation Council Accelerator. Another measure identified in the revised roadmap is Lisbon

City Council’s flagship initiative

Unicorn Factory Lisboa,

which supports technology start-ups and scale-

ups through incubation and acceleration programmes.

Funding for innovation remains an issue.

A report looking at

Portugal’s start-up ecosystem

from

November 2024 showed that Portugal excels in implementing a favourable tax regime for stock options

and has solid digital public services. However, it has struggled with updating its regulatory framework

to foster innovation and ensure sufficient funding for start-ups. Nevertheless, most of the available

funding for innovation in Portugal is directed to start-ups, with only a small portion allocated to later

development stages (9.4% of funding for innovation in Portugal is directed to later-stage innovative

start-ups, compared with an EU average of 48.7%). Significant financial instruments have been put in

place, both within the RRP and elsewhere, to support equity investments in Portuguese venture firms.

Nevertheless, most of these investments are anticipated to occur in 2025 and 2026

2024 recommendation on unicorns:

Continue reinforcing the country's start-up and scale-up

ecosystem, in particular by ensuring availability and effectiveness of adopted measures.

Portugal made efforts to address the recommendation through new policy actions in 2024.

Work is

ongoing to recognise start-ups (see above) and raise awareness of the benefits of investing in them,

such as tax incentives introduced by the

Start-ups Law.

Beyond this, tech and start-ups, visas are in

place, and Portugal continues to implement the RRP, in part by implementing

start-up vouchers.

The

Deep2Start programme has set out a vision to strengthen Portugal’s start-up sector, although its

effects remain to be seen.

Strengthening Cybersecurity & Resilience

In Portugal, 73.07% of individuals reported engaging in at least one action to protect their data

online, slightly above the EU average of 69.55%.

More specifically, at national level, 56.11% of people

took three or more actions to protect their data (see the six types of digital safety actions in the graph’s

legend), and therefore could be considered as having above-basic digital safety skills. Restricting or

refusing access to the user’s geographical location was the action most commonly taken (54.96%),

while the least commonly taken action was changing browser settings to block or limit cookies

(31.5%).

2025 European Semester Portugal country report, Innovation, business environment and productivity.

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Portuguese enterprises tend to experience fewer incidents related to cyberattacks, and Portuguese

employees are more aware of their obligations related to ICT security than the EU average.

The

number of enteprises in Portugal that experienced ICT security incidents leading to the unavailability

of ICT services due to attack from outside (e.g. Ransomware attacks, Denial of Service attacks) has

increased slightly, rising from 2.46% in 2022 to 3.12% in 2024, slightly below the EU average of 3.43%.

Portuguese enterprises are also much less prone to incidents related to hardware or software failures

(10.31%) than their EU peers (17.97%). In terms of measures, the vast majority (95.62%) of enterprises

in Portugal deployed some ICT security measures in 2024 (against the EU average of 92.76%). In

addition, two thirds of Portuguese enterprises (65.63%) made their employees aware of their

obligations related to ICT security, above the EU average for this measure (59.97%).

Portugal shows a mixed performance in the roll out of the secure Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6)

protocol for end users.

On the deployment of

secure internet standards,

Portugal is performing above

the EU average in IPv6 for end users (40% of users vs EU average of 36%), but is significantly below the

EU average on the server side (2%, against 17% for the EU). IPv6 is an important protocol as it ensures

the scalability, stability, and security of the Internet. The deployment of this new version is increasingly

urgent, as traditional IPv4 addresses have been long depleted. Domain Name System Security

Extensions (DNSSEC) is also an important standard to be rolled out as it introduces security features to

DNS. In Portugal, the DNSSEC validation rate (i.e. verification of the authenticity of responses sent by

name servers to clients, using a digital signature technology) is 11% (Q3 2024), below the EU average

of 47% and significantly lower than two years ago (34.8% in Q3 2022).

Intense work is ongoing to transpose the NIS 2 Directive into the Portuguese legal system, after

which the national cybersecurity strategy will be adopted.

Following the adoption of the national

cybersecurity strategy, Portugal is expected to announce a plan to increase the cybersecurity of its 5G

networks.

Public and private stakeholders recognise the value of raising both general cybersecurity awareness

and specialised cybersecurity skills.

Portugal’s National Cybersecurity Centre (CNCS; the national

cybersecurity authority and national cybersecurity certification authority) is responsible for multiple

initiatives in the field funded under the RRP. Many of these initiatives began full operations in 2024

and early 2025. For example, the

C-Academy

provides training in cybersecurity skills in public

administration and private sector, while the

Cybersecurity Competence Centres Network

(C-Network)

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gathers ‘one stop shops’ spread across regions, which are designed to provide local guidance and

services to the public administration, SMEs and other entities. The

Cybersecurity Digital Innovation

Hub

(C-Hub) fosters R&D and introduces cybersecurity innovation in the country. Large Portuguese

tech companies continue cooperating under the

Cybersecurity Alliance,

and the general public can stay

informed about cybersecurity thanks to the

Cybersecurity Observatory.

Portugal is now planning to

launch a ‘Safer Digital’ campaign to raise awareness about cybersecurity among young people.

Protecting and empowering EU people

and society

Empowering people and bringing the digital transformation closer to their

needs

The share of the Portuguese population with at least basic digital skills is roughly the same as the

EU average, although digital skills are less common among people with lower levels of education,

older people, people living in rural areas, and women.

However, the annual growth rate in the

number of enterprises providing ICT training; and the increase in the share of ICT specialists, including

women indicate a positive trend. In addition, some programmes are starting to promote gender

convergence in the area of ICT skills. Robust digital skills are also being promoted through investments

in Portugal’s RRP, including in public administration.

Equipping people with

digital skills

Basic Digital Skills

In 2023, 55.97% (2030 national target 80%) of Portugal’s population had at- least basic digital skills,

close to the EU average (55.56%).

Although these data were not updated in 2024, examining specific

demographics provides a clearer picture of the digital skills landscape. The points below give some

insight into these specific demographics.

•

Gender Gap:

Portugal’s gender gap in digital skills was similar to the EU average in 2023, with

57.21% of men and 54.84% of women proficient in digital skills, resulting in a gap of 2.37 pp.

(this gap is 2.23 pp. for the EU on average).

Education Level:

Educational attainment is significantly correlated with digital proficiency. Of

those with higher education in Portugal, 88.72% had at least basic digital skills, well above the

EU average (79.83%). However, there was a steep drop for those with lower education, only

23.16% of whom had at least basic digital skills, leading to a gap of 32.81 pp. from the national

average. This was considerably larger than the EU average disparity between the digital skills

of those with higher education and the digital skills of those with lower levels of education

(21.95 pp.).

Living Areas:

In rural Portugal, 43.70% of people have at least basic level of digital skills, which

is below the EU average for rural areas (47.50%). The gap between rural areas and the national

average is 12.27 pp., indicating that Portugal has a more pronounced digital divide compared

to the EU (8.06 pp.).

Age Groups:

Young people aged16-24 years in Portugal are highly skilled digitally, with an

82.64% proficiency rate, significantly above the EU average (69.98%). In stark contrast, the 65-

•

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to 74-year-old demographic has a low

proficiency rate of 18.52%, well below the EU

average for that age group (28.19%).

Digital Skills Index components:

Portugal’s

performance in the Digital Skills Index is

mixed, with safety skills being the only

category where, with a score of 73.07, it is

above the EU average (69.72%). The

country’s weakest area is digital-content-

creation skills, with a score of 62.10%, below

the EU average (68.28%).

•

Portugal shows strengths in digital safety skills and

among younger individuals, but faces significant

challenges, particularly in supporting older adults and those with less formal education.

Addressing

these gaps, especially in rural areas and in digital-content creation, could improve overall digital

proficiency and further bridge the digital divide in Portugal.

The revised roadmap sets out multiple existing and planned measures to increase the digital skills

of the population.

Among the new measures, the Digital Skills Curriculum is a plan to develop both

micro credentials in digital skills and ways to certify these micro credentials. The aim of this measure

is to respond to labour market needs by giving the population reliable digital training and a tool to

prove they have reached a certain level of proficiency. Another planned measure is the Digital Skills

Index for use in primary and secondary education. Implementation of a pilot version of this index in

10 representative public schools will start in September 2025, with the index being applied to the last

academic year of each cycle. Expansion of the project to 200 schools is planned to start in September

2026. This pilot will identify five critical areas of intervention to mitigate gaps in students’ digital skills.

In addition, an important part of the country’s approach to digital skills is the continuous training of

public administration on digital skills. This training is receiving support from the RRF.

Portugal’s adjusted roadmap retained its earlier target of 80% of its population having at least basic

digital skills by 2030.

This target remains ambitious but seems achievable with concerted effort across

the society.

2024 recommendation on basic digital skills:

Intensify efforts including by evaluating the take-up of

the current measures and the remaining needs.

Portugal made efforts to address the recommendation through new policy actions in 2024.

New

actions targeting children and the population in general are planned, with results to be evaluated at a

later stage. In addition, many measures reported last year appear to remain in place. However, it is

difficult to assess the take-up of these measures. Moreover, there remains a need to improve digital

skills – especially given age-related, educational and territorial disparities.

ICT specialists

Portugal shows promising trends in its share of ICT specialists. ICT specialists as a percentage of total

employment in Portugal increased to 5.2% in 2024 (2030 national target 7%), exceeding the EU’s

5.0%.

The country is now on track according to its national trajectory.

As the value in 2023 was 4.6%

(number revised from last year), the yearly growth rate of 13.0% for Portugal in this category was

substantially higher than the EU’s growth rate of 4.2%.

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Portugal also shows a positive trend in its share of female ICT specialists.

This figure increased from

20.2% of ICT specialists in 2023 to 22.7% in 2024, remaining above the EU’s 19.5% in 2024. Portugal’s

growth rate of 12.4% in this area is far higher than the EU’s 0.5%. In 2022, 23.66% of enterprises with

10 or more employees in Portugal provided ICT training, slightly surpassing the EU average of 22.37%.

By 2024, this figure rose to 27.79%, while the EU average decreased slightly to 22.29%. Portugal’s

annual growth rate of 8.4% in this area significantly outpaces the EU’s -0.2%.

On demand in the labour market,

Eurostat experimental statistics

based on web scraping show that

‘software and applications developers and analysts’ are the most sought after IT profile in Portugal,

representing 51.5% of online job advertisements for ICT specialists (against 58.0% at EU level). In

addition, 29.5% of online job advertisements for ICT specialists in the country are for ‘information and

communications technology operations and user support technicians’, making this role in more

demand in Portugal than in the EU on average (10.4%).

The 2030 target set by Portugal for ICT specialists as a share of total employment is 7%, which is

lower than the 10% target value for the EU.

However, given the good rate of progress this national

target seems achievable, and the authorities expressed initial openness to an upward revision of the

target in the future.

The revised roadmap included some existing measures to address the 2024 recommendation.

One

example of this is the + Digital Trainer programme (Formador

+ Digital),

which started in late 2023 and

plans to train 4 000 professional digital trainers by the end of Q3 2025. Part of the RRF investment on

the digital empowerment of enterprises, Employment + Digital (Emprego

+ Digital),

this RRF initiative

aims to attract technology-sector professionals and specialists to help them improve their pedagogical

skills, enabling them to obtain certification to work as trainers in their areas of expertise. It also focuses

on reorienting professionals who already hold certification in teaching skills and wish to develop

specialised skills in specific digital technologies.

Tackling gender balance in the field of ICT specialists and in science, technology engineering and

mathematics (STEM) has become more visible in the Portuguese political agenda.

The recently

launched ‘Girls in STEM’ National Programme encompasses, first, an ‘Ambassadors Network’, through

which women working in STEM fields meet female high school and university students to mentor and

inspire them by sharing academic and professional experiences. The second, future strand of this

programme will be governmental support for projects by all stakeholders (e.g. academia, private

sector, NGOs) which will promote the interest, attraction and retention of girls and women in STEM

fields throughout education and on the labour market.

Other initiatives are still underway.

One example is the requalification programme UpSkill, which

involves intense theoretical courses and hands-on training in companies and aims to train 7 500 people

by 2030. Importantly, increasing the number of students graduating from tertiary education courses

in STEAM fields is also one of the targets under the RRF (RE-C06-i04), with 10 000 additional graduates

in the school year 2023/2024, compared to the school year 2019/2020.

2024 recommendation on ICT specialists:

Adopt additional measures for ICT specialists, including

cybersecurity talent and promoting ICT studies and gender balance in the field.

Portugal made some efforts to address the recommendation through new policy actions in 2024.

Specific action was taken to promote gender balance in ICT and STEM, for example through Girls in

STEM. In addition, earlier launched initiatives, such as the + Digital Trainer programme were added to

the revised roadmap (see above).

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Key digital public services and solutions – trusted, user-friendly, and accessible to all

On digital public services for citizens, Portugal scored 84.48 (2030 national target: 100), after a

progression of 3.6%, putting the country above the EU average for 2024 of 82.32.

The country is now

on track according to its national trajectory, and its year-on-year growth rate of 3.6% between 2023

and 2024 mirrored the EU’s growth rate. For cross-border digital public services for citizens, the

country scored 71.67, exceeding the EU’s 71.28. Portugal's growth rate of 9.0% the EU's 4.3%. The

share of Portuguese people using government internet websites or apps has increased significantly,

rising from 80.61% in 2023 to 85.25% in 2024, well above the 2024 EU average of 74.71% in 2024.

On digital public services for businesses, Portugal’s score was 84.31 in 2024 (2030 national target

100), after a progression of 2.9%, but this means Portugal was still below the EU’s score of 86.23 for

that year.

The country is on track according to its national trajectory. On cross-border digital public

services for businesses, Portugal lagged behind the EU’s score of 73.76 with a score of 68.61.

Nevertheless, Portugal’s year-on-year growth rate between 2023 and 2024 of 7.4% was significantly

higher than the EU’s of 0.9%.

Access to e-Health records in Portugal is continuously improving, and with a score of 88.07 in 2024

(2030 national target: 100), exceeding the EU average of 82.7.

The country is on track according to its

national trajectory. However, Portugal’s growth rate of 2.4% between 2023 and 2024 on this measure

was slightly lower than the EU’s 4.5%.

eID

In its adjusted roadmap, Portugal made reference to GOV.PT app, a new measure to build a single

public-services app.

In December 2024, GOV.PT app replaced the two public-services apps that had

been in use. Further plans for this app include implementation of push notifications to proactively

inform citizens about the services available and design changes to gradually integrate more proactive

services.

National stakeholders remain active in piloting the usage of EUDI Wallets through four large-scale

pilots before EUDIW becomes fully operational by the end of 2026.

One of the most recent pilots is

the Advanced Project for Trusted Identity Technologies and Unified Digital Ecosystem (APTITUDE). The

participants in the APTITUDE consortium, of which Portugal is one, focus on advancing the use of

wallets for travel and payment purposes across four use cases: payments, mobile vehicle-registration

certificates, digital travel credentials, and tickets and travel check-in. Another new project is also being

implemented in Portugal by the consortium Wallet Ecosystem for Business & Payment Use cases,

Identification, Legal person representation and Data sharing (WE BUILD), jointly led by Sweden and

the Netherlands. WE BUILD aims to pilot the usage of EUDI Wallets across 13 use cases in the areas of

business, supply chain, and payments, and will become operational in autumn 2025.

Digitalisation of public services for citizens and businesses

Following the 2024 recommendations, Portugal has set national targets for digital public services for

citizens and businesses by 2030. These targets are to reach scores of 100 by 2030, and are

accompanied by trajectories to reach these values.

Given Portugal’s overall progress rate so far, and

if roadmap measures are implemented, this target seems achievable.

The adjusted roadmap includes new measures to support the digitalisation of public services and

the digital transformation of the national administration.

For example, Portugal plans to make

available authentication processes in autenticação.gov.pt (a citizen card and digital mobile key) the

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exclusive means of authentication for all digital public services. Additionally, a guide with

recommendations for drafting digital-ready legislation will be prepared in 2025. The 2025-2026 action

plan for the National Digital Strategy contains plans to create a national digital agency to harmonise

the implementation of public policies related to digital public services and make it more efficient.

GOV.PT, the Portuguese single digital gateway (formerly known as ePortugal) has been undergoing

changes since the 2024 State of the Digital Decade report.

The new version of the generative AI virtual

assistant, launched in December 2024, uses the most advanced generative AI technology, based on

OpenAI’s ChatGPT model, and has a knowledge base specifically developed to offer information on

more than 2 300 public services. The interface for GOV.PT, available in text and voice, facilitates direct

and personalised interaction and offers support in 12 languages. An AI virtual assistant is also

integrated into more than 5 000 GOV.PT pages, with plans to expand its capabilities. The project

foresees new transactional functionalities from 2025, including the monitoring of processes and

services such as scheduling appointments. The development of the national large-language model

Amalia can support this process.

2024 recommendation on digital public services/e-ID:

Continue developing user-friendly e-

Government solutions and intensify efforts to promote their take-up, with particular attention to the

e-ID.

Portugal made efforts to address the recommendation through new policy actions in 2024.

The

country is expanding its network of RRF-funded ‘citizen spots’ (dedicated desks, for example in

hospitals and parish councils, city councils and other public facilities) which advertise e-ID and

increasingly provide training on digital public services, within the scope of the National Digital Strategy.

A single app (see above) will contribute to this goal. Currently, a public procurement procedure is being

carried out to promote the dissemination and activation of e-ID at several summer events, thereby

achieving a higher rate of usage among younger people.

e-Health

Following the 2024 recommendation, Portugal has set a target for access to e-health records with a

score of 100 by 2030.

Given the continuous progress in recent years, this target seems achievable. The

country did not add any new measures on e-health in its adjusted roadmap, but it continues

implementing the large RRF investment on the digital health transition, which is also included in its

roadmap, and might explain Portugal’s remarkable progress in this area in recent years.

The country continues to collaborate on e-health solutions in a cross-border context.

In 2024, it

expanded participation in the

MyHealth@EU

initiative by sharing health data with Latvia, Lithuania,

and Ireland, raising the number of countries with which health data can be exchanged to 13, one of

the highest in Europe. This expansion strengthens the initiative’s goal of improving healthcare

collaboration and access across Europe.

2024 recommendation on e-health:

Make the data types of medical images and hospital discharge

reports available to citizens through the online access service and, building on existing legal provisions,

implement technical functionality for legal guardians and authorised persons to access electronic

health data on behalf of others.

Portugal made significant efforts to address the recommendation through new policy actions in

2024.

The country has worked to provide citizens with access to hospital discharge reports, which are

now available through the National Health System portal (SNS24) for several public hospitals. As part

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of the actions under its RRP, Portugal has drawn up plans to implement the remaining

recommendations. These include plans to: (i) make medical images available in various formats

through the ‘Exames Sem Papel’ (paperless medical exams) initiative; and (ii) develop technical

solutions that will enable legal representatives and guardians to access health data, in line with

existing legal provisions. In this regard, Portugal is developing a dedicated platform to provide citizens

with access to medical images. The final draft of the platform’s legal framework has been completed,

and technical developments are currently being decided on and implemented.

Building a safe and human centric digital environment and preserving our

democracy

Online participation in political and civic life is slowly growing.

In 2024, 22.12% of people in Portugal

used the internet to participate in consultations, for voting or sharing opinions online. This share is

slightly above the EU average and trending upward (20.58% in 2022), in line with the trend observed

at EU level (17.59% in 2022 and 20.45% in 2024).

Portugal’s revised roadmap includes a measure to increase digital civic participation.

As planned by

the National Digital Strategy, the

Participa.gov.pt

platform, which is used for participatory processes,

will gain new functionalities and capabilities to make it simpler to use and more interactive. In addition,

awareness-raising actions are planned to promote this democratic activity online.

Less than 1 in 4 of those who encounter doubtful information online check its accuracy.

In 2023,

51.73% of individuals in Portugal reported having encountered untrue or doubtful information or

content on internet news sites or social media, slightly above the EU average of 49.25%. Of those

exposed, according to the survey, 23.45% checked the truthfulness of the information or content,

reflecting a modest effort to verify the reliability of the information. Young people (those aged 16-24)

reported more exposure to this doubtful information (64.5% said they had been exposed) than adults

(those aged 25-64) (55.58% of whom said they had been exposed), with verification rates being

substantially higher for young people (37.71% checked the information they encountered) than was

among adults (only 24.68%). Men (53.75%) reported slightly more exposure than women (49.87%),

and also showed a slightly higher verification rate (24.94% for men and 22.09% for women).

A high share of Portugal’s population, especially young people, encounters hostile and degrading

messages online.

In 2023, 35.48% of individuals encountered online messages considered hostile or

degrading towards groups of people, such as those based on LGBTIQ identities or religion. This was

slightly above the EU average of 33.5%. Young people (aged 16-24) reported significantly higher

exposure (52.69% said they had been exposed) than adults (aged 25-64) (37.5% of whom said they

had been exposed), indicating a marked age-related gap. Women (36.16%) and men (34.74%)

experienced very similar rates, with no significant gender differences.

Digital and media literacy is receiving growing attention from the authorities.

Following the

publication of the 2023 Guidelines for a National Plan on Media Literacy the government presented in

October 2024 a comprehensive Media Action Plan that sets out 30 measures to combat disinformation

(e.g. through a strengthened role for publicly funded media) and promote media literacy, responsible

media consumption and informed citizenship. The measures, which are in the early stages of

implementation, include discounts and free access to news-media digital subscriptions in specific age

groups, as well as pilot projects on media literacy in schools. A wider strategy the National Plan on

Media Literacy for 2025-2029 is under preparation.

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Portugal is also giving increasing attention to the protection of minors.

The revised roadmap

proposes a future ‘Safer Digital’ campaign. This campaign will involve pinpointing key areas for

intervention to: (i) increase awareness among young people about the safe use of digital technologies,

including online services and social networks; and (ii) adapt the message by using communication

channels most favoured by youth.

In addition, according to the Digital Decade Eurobarometer 2025,

Portuguese people consider it

urgent that public authorities act to protect children online regarding the negative impact of social

media on children’s mental health (95% of Portuguese respondents), cyberbullying and online

harassment (94%) and to put in place age assurance mechanisms to restrict age-inappropriate content

(96%).

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Leveraging digital transformation for a

smart greening

Sustainability is becoming more important for Portuguese authorities.

Examples can be found in

Portugal’s drive to build territorial cohesion and smart cities through digital tools and the digitalisation

of administrative procedures. However, a comprehensive approach to addressing both the digital and

green transitions is missing. According to the Digital Decade Eurobarometer 2025, 75% of Portuguese

people consider digital technologies important to help fight climate change (increase by 18 pp. since

last year), while 83% of Portuguese respondents think that ensuring that digital technologies serve the

green transition should be an important action for public authorities.

Portugal’s population recycles only a small part of its ICT equipment, but makes sustainable choices

when buying this equipment.

In 2024, the country’s inhabitants recycled their laptop and desktop

devices less (9.26% for laptops and tablets, 10.49% for desktops) than the EU average (11.31% and

14.66%, respectively). This lower rate of recycling in Portugal was also the case for mobile phones

(9.74% against 10.93% for the EU). However, in another 2024 survey, 38.27% of people in Portugal said

that they considered energy efficiency as an important factor when purchasing ICT devices, the highest

number in the EU (EU average: 19.35%) and 24.6% said they considered the eco-design of the device

to be important, which is also well above the EU average (12.04%). However, those two eco-friendly

criteria were less important for Portuguese consumers than the price, performance, and design of the

ICT device.

Significant actions to unleash the potential of digital technologies for a greener future are covered

by Portugal’s

National Strategy for Smart Territories

(ENTI) launched in late 2023.

The strategy

focuses on transforming data into actionable insights to enable efficient, sustainable, and transparent

management of territories. The goal is for this strategy to improve decision-making and services for

citizens and businesses. It is supported by RRF investment on intelligent territories (TD-C19-i08) and

covered under the ‘Digital and Smart Nation’ initiative of the National Digital Strategy. Specific

measures under those initiatives seek to interconnect territories and share data and good practices on

the country’s future Smart Territories Portal, National Data Management System for Smart Territories,

Public Policies Dashboard and the Local Government Observatory. The strategy will rely on high-speed

connectivity and interoperable digital services. Other actions under the strategy, the Urban

Management Platforms can serve sustainability through: (i) integrated data management; (ii)

digitalised procedures; and (iii) the promotion of smart energy grids, efficient mobility solutions, and

environmental monitoring through the internet of things and AI, taking into account local challenges.

Five ‘Digital Twins’ (computer-based virtual representations of real-world systems such as water or

transport systems) will be created to tackle the issues most prioritised by Portugal, such as climate

resilience, water, mobility and civil protection.

The revised roadmap also includes measures linking digital tools with environmental objectives.

However, they do not explore the full potential of digital technologies in this regard.

One example of

these tools is iFAMA,

a centralised online portal for reporting environmental violations. This tool makes

it possible to promptly submit evidence and ensure transparency in tracking complaints. It also

empowers citizens to report environmental violations and promotes administrative efficiency.

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2024 recommendation on green ICT:

(i) Develop a coherent approach to twinning the digital and

green transitions. First, promote improvements in energy and material efficiency of digital

infrastructures, in particular data centres. Second, support the development and deployment of digital

solutions that reduce the carbon footprint in other sectors, such as energy, transport, buildings, and

agriculture, including the uptake of such solutions by SMEs. (ii) Monitor and quantify the emission

reductions of the deployed digital solutions in line with the relevant EU guidance and with the support

of the methodology developed by the European Green Digital Coalition, in view of future policy

development, as well as of attracting relevant financing.

In 2024, Portugal continued to implement existing measures, but did not take any new

measures.

The relationship between sustainability and digital solutions is receiving some attention

but has not been approached in a comprehensive way. Some work is ongoing as indicated in the

roadmap, for example through the publicly supported industry initiative

Agenda for Ecoceramics and

Crystal of Portugal,

which aims to improve the competitiveness of this sector through more

sustainable and digitally enabled production and value chains. However, a comprehensive approach

is missing.

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Annex I – National roadmap analysis

Portugal’s national Digital Decade strategic roadmap

Portugal submitted a fully revised national Digital Decade roadmap in December 2024 (with targeted

adjustments until March 2025), containing 157 measures, 12 targets (up from 5 reported last year)

and 8 trajectories (compared to none in the previous roadmap). The roadmap is largely based on

Portugal’s

National Digital Strategy

also from December 2024 and its action plan, which were both

put out for consultation with stakeholders as reported in the roadmap. The updates are aligned with

the new Commission’s priorities on AI, sovereignty, simplification and digital skills, as well as

addresses a substantial number of roadmap recommendations issued in 2024, as listed below.

•

Propose targets and trajectories concerning VHCN, FTTP, 5G coverage, edge nodes, cloud,

AI and data analytics separately, accessibility of key public services for citizens and

businesses, access to e-health records and set trajectories for basic digital skills, ICT

specialists, digital intensity of SMEs, unicorns using correct baseline values.

Portugal largely

addressed this recommendation. Targets for edge nodes and data analytics are missing, as

are target trajectories related to the digitalisation of businesses.

Align the level of ambition of the target for ICT specialists with the EU target:

The 7% target

was not raised, and no explanation was provided.

Consider establishing national ambitions for technological leadership, competitiveness, and

resilience to support EU-wide targets regarding semiconductors and quantum:

No new

ambitions were introduced, but reporting was expanded.

Supplement the roadmap with measures related to connectivity:

information was added

related to 5G and VHCN tenders, as well as submarine cable investments.

Review the measures contributing to targets on skills and digitalisation of enterprises,

consider setting up additional measures for ICT specialists and basic digital intensity of

enterprises:

National measures were listed and described more extensively, but both the

attribution of these measures to concrete targets – and the novelty of these measures – is

unclear.

Review the budget description of all presented measures, highlighting both national and EU

sources:

A more comprehensive overview was added.

Provide more information on the implementation of digital rights and principles (and Digital

Decade general objectives), including what national measures contribute to it:

Portugal

provided a comprehensive mapping in this regard.

Incorporate, where appropriate, measures reported through other channels in the roadmap:

Portugal addressed this recommendation, except for some areas (e.g. cybersecurity).

Consult key stakeholders, as outlined in the DDPP, before proposing the adjustment to the

national roadmap:

Stakeholder consultations were conducted in the context of National

Digital Strategy.

•

Overall, Portugal presented a non-exhaustive selected set of the main policies and measures

contributing to the achievement of most of the Digital Decade targets. The measures presented also

cover several types of objectives: technological leadership, sovereignty, competitiveness and

human-centred digital transformation. The roadmap responds to most of the objectives, such as

human-centred digital transformation, simplification, sovereignty and resilience. However, areas

such as sustainability and inclusion lack specific focus, while competitiveness is not comprehensively

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articulated. The revised roadmap continues to prioritise digital skills (but not across all

demographics), digital public administration and the digitalisation of businesses, in particular

through information sharing and improving the skills of employees. In total, the measures presented

amount to EUR 2.15 billion, or 0.75% of GDP, with a significant share of the funding for this coming

from the Recovery and Resilience Facility.

Measures and budget in national roadmap

When referring to national roadmaps, data used in this report are those declared by the Member States in their national

roadmaps, on the basis of the Commission’s guidance (C(2023) 4025 final). Data might reflect possible variations in reporting

practices and methodological choices across Member States. No systematic assessment of the extent to which Member

States followed the guidance was carried out.

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Annex II – Factsheet on multi-country

projects (MCPs) and funding

Multi-country projects and best practices

Portugal is a member of the Local Digital Twins towards the CitiVERSE EDIC and of the EUROPEUM EDIC.

It is also an observer to the Alliance for Language Technologies EDIC, and is leading efforts to set up an

EDIC in the area of startups. Portuguese entities are indirect and/or associated partners in the IPCEI on

Microelectronics and Communication Technologies (IPCEI-ME/CT). Portugal is also a participating state

of the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking (JU) and of the Chips JU.

Portugal has contributed to the Best Practice Accelerator

by sharing one best practice in the frame of

the Green IT cluster (National Strategy for Smart Territories).

EU funding for digital policies in Portugal

Portugal allocates 21% of its total recovery and resilience plan to digital (EUR 4.5 billion)

. In addition,

under cohesion policy, EUR 2.4 billion (representing 11% of the country’s total cohesion policy funding),

is dedicated to advancing Portugal’s digital transformation

. According to JRC estimates, EUR 6.09

billion directly contribute to achieving Digital Decade targets (of which EUR 4.42 billion comes from the

RRF and EUR 1.67 billion from cohesion policy funding)

The biggest digital measures of the plan are investments in the ‘Digital transition of education’

(EUR 614 million) and ‘Modernisation of supply and vocational education and training institutions –

Equipment for digital skills’ (EUR 521 million), followed by the ‘Digital Transition of Enterprises’

(EUR 399 million), ‘Digital Health Transition’ (EUR 300 million) and several measures related to

digitalisation of the national administration.

Best Practice Accelerator (BPA) is a platform that enables Member States to share successful measures and challenges

encountered in their efforts to meet their Digital Decade targets and objectives. Best practices are made available to Member

States via the BPA Repository and showcased in regular workshops, currently focused on three thematic clusters: Digital Skills,

Green IT, and the Uptake of Digital Technologies.

The share of financial allocations that contribute to digital objectives has been calculated using Annex VII to the Recovery

and Resilience Facility Regulation. Last data update: 16 May 2025.

This amount includes all investment specifically aimed at or substantially contributing to digital transformation in the 2021-

2027 Cohesion policy programming period. The source funds are the European Regional Development Fund, the Cohesion

Fund, the European Social Fund Plus, and the Just Transition Fund.

Joint Research Centre, Nepelski, D. and Torrecillas, J. Mapping EU level funding instruments 2021-2027 to Digital Decade

targets – 2025 update, Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg, 2025, JRC141966. Last data update: 10 March

2025.

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Annex III – Digital rights and principles

Activity on digital rights and principles

(figure 1)

Portugal has been one of the most active Member States in implementing digital rights and

principles,

with over 100 initiatives overall and 14 new initiatives launched in 2024, showing notable

progress towards its commitments.

Portugal is most active in the area of Digital education, training

and skills

(II). There is room for improvement, especially with regards to Privacy and individual

control over data (V) where less activity has been identified.

Impact of digital rights initiatives

(figure 2)

Quantitative impact indicators developed by the support study illustrate the level of implementation

of digital rights initiatives on the ground. Based on available data, they estimate the impact of

measures implemented by key stakeholders in Portugal (mainly national government) and how

these are perceived by citizens.

The indicators suggest that

Portugal is most successful in implementing commitments related to

Freedom of choice

(III). Portugal could review and strengthen efforts in areas where the impact of

digital rights initiatives appears to be limited despite relative activity, notably on Participation in the

digital public space (IV).

According to the Special Eurobarometer 'Digital Decade 2025’,

45% of citizens in Portugal think that

the EU protects their digital rights well

(a 2% increase since 2024). This is slightly above the EU

average of 44%. Citizens are particularly confident about getting more freedom of expression and

information online (56%, below the EU average of 60%). They are most worried that their right to a

safe digital environment and content for children and young people is not well protected (49%,

above the EU average of 48%).

Based on a study to support the Monitoring of the Implementation of the Declaration on Digital Rights and Principles,

available

here.

For a more detailed country factsheet accompanying the study, click

here.