More youngsters are taking science and technical subjects at college and university but there are still too many vacancies, government figures show.

The percentage of university students taking a science degree has risen from 26% to 35% over the past 10 years but the rise is much smaller at hbo colleges, where only one in five students takes a science degree.

In 2013 the education and economic affairs ministries joined forces with industry and education institutes to develop a programme aimed at encouraging more students to take science subjects, at both degree and vocational training levels.

Nevertheless, there are still 28,000 vacancies for technical studies students, the government figures show.