The "voluntary basic military service" model for women was launched around a year ago. The aim of the project was to give women low-threshold access to the Federal Army. There are currently 755 female soldiers on active duty. 257 women have registered for "voluntary basic military service"; 143 of these women have already been called up. 137 have already been called up and 100 of these are currently active. "One of our department's goals is to increase the proportion of women and especially female soldiers in the Austrian Federal Army. And we have succeeded! With the introduction of voluntary basic military service, we have been able to increase the proportion of female soldiers to five percent, which is the highest level since 1998. This measure not only strengthens the staffing levels of our department, but also shows that our innovative projects are having an impact. We will continue on our path to integrate even more women into the ministry and increase the proportion of female soldiers in the Federal Army," said Defense Minister Klaudia Tanner. Since April 1, 2023, the "voluntary basic military service" has enabled women to get to know the Federal Army without any further obligation and to decide on a career as a soldier within a period of six months. Previously, female soldiers could only enter a cadre career as an officer or non-commissioned officer directly by taking their own aptitude test. They first had to complete an aptitude test and then the cadre candidate training. The "voluntary basic military service for women" project gives them the opportunity to decide over a period of six months whether they are mentally and physically willing to take up a career as a soldier. The profession of soldier is made more attractive for women through ongoing measures such as Girls' Day, female soldier mentoring and childcare options.