The most established programming language within the Functional Programming space is Scala. Due to its growing demand as a key tool for organisations, Scala has created many new career opportunities for a software engineer with experience using it. We expect that Rust will be used more widely in the coming years and that demand for a software developer with Rust knowledge will remain very healthy.
As we begin to emerge from the Covid-19 era, Functional Programming appears strong with healthy demand from our clients who use the tools. Organizations are still being reserved in relocating candidates from outside their location. The main reason why many organizations in Europe are beginning to utilise Functional Programming is that it has been found to solve many of the challenges that have risen with the traditional Object Orientated Programming (OOP) approach.
The Maltese market is starting to see a few companies adopting the programming languages such as Scala but mostly within the data space thus, there is rarely a use for a pure Scala Software Engineer. With the emergence of Blockchain and Crypto companies, there comes a use for the Rust programming language due to its safety and reliability.
It is expected that Rust will become more utilised, especially now, as it has been used by big names such as Facebook. Haskell and Rust are seen as very advantageous skills to have as they are a niche within Functional Programming. Many technical managers are looking for Scala engineers who have experience with Functional Programming frameworks such as Cats, Shapeless and ZION.