Editorial: Incentives for early military service

In tenses times military service is viewed as a national duty. In times of peace, however, when the moment comes for young adults to be called to serve, they seek a suitable moment that will allow them to “lose less time”.

They decide whether to serve immediately after graduating from high school in order to get it over with right away or whether they will use their admission to university to secure a much-desired postponement.

The sense of despondency and stagnation is familiar to most soldiers, including those who do not complain.

The solution is just as obvious as the problem. As long as our youth view military service as a waste of time they will not fulfil their duty properly. Hence, it is the responsibility of the army to help them sees things from a different vantage point.

A report in today’s issue of Ta Nea discusses the prospect of instituting a certificate of skills acquired in areas such as foreign languages, computers, and e-learning. Beyond military training, the government hopes that taking advantage of these skills can serve as an additional incentive for young people to perform their service immediately after graduating from high school.

In the past, skills acquired in the army could offer professional opportunities in specific areas. This time the aim is simply to enhance one’s CV.

The government’s overarching objective is to improve the relationship between the army and those who are called to service by offering more mutual benefits.