Australia’s tech skills crisis is a city-sized problem we can’t ignore — Capital Brief

By 2030, Australia will be short 1.3 million tech workers — the equivalent of wiping out the entire workforce of a city like Adelaide.

It’s a gap the nation can’t afford, and one we can’t close without women, who make up almost half the workforce but remain underrepresented in tech, particularly outside major cities.

According to the ACS Australia’s Digital Pulse report, Australia’s reskilling gap is projected to affect 1.3 million roles across the workforce by 2030, including a critical shortage of 237,000 specialist tech workers.

The economic cost is stark: $16 billion in lost productivity in 2030 alone.