Registrations for the voluntary military service year have closed, with 3,248 young people applying, including around 20% women, according to Defence Minister Theo Francken’s office.
All seventeen-year-olds in the country received an invitation to apply last year. Applicants will now undergo selection tests, including a basic intelligence test, physical tests, and a technical assessment, lieutenant colonel Margot Van Waeyenberghe explained on Radio 1.
From the pool of candidates, 500 will be offered training as reservists, though more invitations will be sent to account for potential dropouts, Francken’s office has stated. According to Bruzz, the figure includes 306 from Brussels.
Training for the new reservists begins in August, primarily within the army. The programme will focus on essential skills such as map reading, basic tactics, and first aid, which “every soldier must master,” according to Van Waeyenberghe.
This marks the first time the military has organised a service year of this nature.
Francken expressed satisfaction with the response, stating that the figures demonstrate young people understand “that the era of playing games on a geopolitical level is over.”
