The Armed Forces lost 134 personnel in the second quarter of this year, bringing to 738 the reduction of military personnel during 2023, the officers’ association (AOFA) warned today.
“The Portuguese Armed Forces have once again seen a reduction in personnel, which in the second quarter of 2023 alone stands at 134. This year alone, the Armed Forces have already lost 738 soldiers,” says the AOFA, in an analysis of data from the Directorate-General for Administration and Public Employment.
According to the association, between 2011 and the second quarter of this year, the number of personnel in the Armed Forces fell from 34,514 to 23,558, i.e. 10,956 fewer soldiers.
“In recent years, 10,956 military personnel have been cleaned out, corresponding to a colossal percentage reduction of 31.74%,” says AOFA’s analysis of the Directorate General’s statistics.
In August, the Minister of Defense acknowledged that there are difficulties in Portugal and other countries in recruiting military personnel, but assured that the government is working to attract and retain personnel.
The difficulties of recruitment and retention “have been recognized above all in Portugal and in other countries that face these difficulties. We have taken a number of measures to deal with these difficulties,” said Helena Carreiras.
“There is a set of measures to which are added measures in the area of income. Just as we did in 2022, when it was possible to increase salaries by between two and eight percent and for the lowest categories of the pay scale to increase by up to 100 euros, valuing a group of 8,000 military personnel,” she said.
