Investment in education, long-term unemployment and EU Youth Strategy dominate SEDEC commission meeting
At a time of continuous spending cuts in educational budgets, a new boost in investment for education is critically needed not only to enhance skills and employability, but also to foster inclusion and integration and fight radicalisation. This call was made today by the members of the European Committee of the Regions' Commission for Social Policy, Education, Employment, Research and Culture (SEDEC) during a debate with representatives from the European Commission, the European Parliament and the civil society.
As the Education Council is due to agree new priorities under the strategic framework for European cooperation in education and training next week, members of the SEDEC commission engaged today in a debate on "How to foster inclusion and equality through investment in education leading to upwards social convergence". The hearing also took place in the context of the announced adoption of a "New Skills Agenda for Europe" by the European Commission next year.
Introducing the debate, SEDEC Chair Yoomi Renström (SE/PES) highlighted that, according to the Special Regional Eurobarometer i published last October, migration and unemployment but also education represent today three of the main important issues for Europeans. She also expressed concerns over the spending cuts in national budgets for education, which have fallen by 3.2% across Europe since 2010. "Education investment has decreased for the third consecutive year across the EU, exacerbating educational poverty, that is, young people's inability to reach minimum standards in education. We witness every day in our cities and regions the close link between socio-economic disadvantages and educational poverty, leading to the perpetuation of a vicious circle of unemployment and marginalisation. This is why investments in effective education and training systems are crucial", she said.
Martine Reicherts i , European Commission's Director-General for Education and Culture, emphasised the key role education can play to foster the integration of young people in society: "It is high time we thought about social inclusion and how we can integrate young people so that they feel part of society and have a future. Education together with sport, youth but also culture policies, have the potential of bringing people closer together. This is why they should be at the heart of any process to fight radicalisation".
Whilst insisting on the importance of the recognition of skills and competences acquired through non-formal and informal learning, Momchil Nekov i MEP (S&D/Bulgaria), member of the European Parliament's Committee on Culture and Education, stressed the vital role of investment in human capital: "There are great economic benefits from investments in education, but we need to ensure that investments are made not only in infrastructures but also in human capital", he said.
Representing the civil society, David Lopez, President of the Lifelong Learning Platform EUCIS-LLL, pointed out that the crisis has increased inequalities, weakened social protection and made the education systems more fragile and that, in such a context, "public institutions at all levels should consider education as a long-term investment with political and financial continuity, and not as a difficulty or a simple budget line".
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This was a point highlighted also in the draft opinion adopted earlier on by SEDEC and led by Csaba Borboly (EPP/Romania), President of Harghita County Council, reacting to the 2015 EU Youth Report assessing overall progress towards the objectives of the EU Youth Strategy 2010-2018. The draft opinion calls for youth policy to be mainstreamed into all EU policies, defending the strong economic case for education and urging for investments in this field as part of the EU's long-term youth and growth strategies. SEDEC members also endorsed the Rapporteur's proposals for a "minimum qualifications and skills guarantee" to empower young people to complete a minimum level of educational attainment, and for a "basic package" that each Member State could guarantee for young people and which would include, inter alia, access to high speed Internet, learning of foreign languages and career guidance. The draft opinion also asks for more to be done to promote equal opportunities for young people who live in small communities and further develop professional training initiatives tailored to regional specificities. At the same time, it supports the European Commission's commitment to take rapid action to respond to new challenges linked to the integration of young refugees or the rise in extremism among young people.
The societal and economic challenges of unemployment, not least youth unemployment, were also at the heart of the debate in relation to the adoption of the draft opinion by Enrico Rossi (PES/Italy), President of the Tuscany Region, responding to the European Commission's proposal for recommendations to Member States on how to better tackle long-term unemployment. SEDEC members welcome the aim of the recommendations but are concerned that the European Commission proposal overlooks a number of important elements, including measures to strengthen demand for labour and the need to give a significant boost to public employment services through adequate financing so that they have the necessary resources and qualified staff to provide the proposed personalised assistance to the long-term unemployed. SEDEC members also highlighted the close link between long-term unemployment and increased risk of poverty, and expressed support for solidarity mechanisms, such as through the establishment of a European long-term unemployment insurance scheme.
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More information:
The Committee of the Regions' SEDEC commission
The Commission for Social Policy, Education, Employment, Research and Culture (SEDEC) coordinates the European Committee of the Regions' work in the areas of employment, social policy, equal opportunities, innovation, research and technology, Digital Agenda, education and training, audio-visual industry and media, youth and sport, multilingualism and culture. It gathers about 110 regional and local elected representatives from the 28 EU member states. It is chaired by Yoomi Renström (SE/PES), Member of Ovanåker Municipal Council.