Council of Ministers approves decree for recruitment and career reform in the Armed Forces with target of 160,000 soldiers by 2033

Amendments to the Code of Military Order on the recruitment system and career progressions are introduced by a legislative decree, approved in preliminary examination by the Council of Ministers, implementing the delegation of powers for the revision of the national military instrument.

As the note issued by Palazzo Chigi at the end of the meeting recalls, 'the objective is to progressively reach, by 2033, the total number of military personnel (Army, Navy, Air Force), set at 160,000, guaranteeing a functional relationship between categories and roles marked by efficiency and organicity'.

The main measures of the legislative decree, the note explains, 'concern:
1) the revision of the career of officers with the remodulation of the training path in the Academy (appointment to aspirant in the second year and second lieutenant in the third) and recognition of the initial economic treatment of aspirants;
2) the harmonisation of the marshals' terms, with the introduction of a mandatory five-year term of service for trainees recruited through public competition;
3) the extension of access for volunteers in fixed-term service to extraordinary competitions for the sergeant role.

Moreover, 'on the transit and ageing of the roles, transitional measures have been introduced thatraise until 2033 the age limit to 40 years for access to officer competitions for personnel already in service, and provide for extraordinary competitions for transit in the marshal roles for military personnel with specific degrees. To these are added extraordinary competitions for sergeants, open until 2030 also to civilian personnel (with a diploma and age not exceeding 32 years), in the presence of specific functional requirements'. The Cabinet approved, also in preliminary examination and in implementation of the delegated power, another legislative decree with 'provisions on the revision of the organisational and organisational structure of military health'.

the measure introduces an overall revision of the organisational and organisational structure of the Military Health Service in accordance with inter-force and specialisation criteria," the note explains. To this end, it provides for the establishment of the single Military Health Corps, defining the procedures for the transit of health personnel from the Armed Forces and the Carabinieri. The effectiveness of the provisions relating to the establishment of the single Corps and the relative transit of personnel is established as of 1 January 2027, in order to allow for the necessary reorganisation of the Military Health structure'.