Discours de Ondřej Liška à la Réunion de la commission du Culture et éducation du Parlement européen, 19 janvier
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OPENING REMARKS
Madam Chair, Honourable Members, Ladies and Gentlemen,
A very good afternoon to you all. I am delighted to have this opportunity to present to you the main priorities in the field of education and training, youth and sports of this Presidency, the first Czech Presidency of the Council of the European Union.
Ladies and gentlemen, I am sure you will agree with me when I say that my country takes over the helm of the Union at a particularly critical moment. The financial crisis which rocked economies across the world last autumn, and the ensuing economic slowdown which is likely to affect us for some time to come, have presented Europe with one of the most taxing problems it has ever faced. These serious economic difficulties come on top of the many other important challenges facing the EU - climate change, globalisation, demographic changes of all kinds and accelerating technological development - and require a coordinated response. More than ever, there is a need to demonstrate the added value of cooperation at European level by combining our collective efforts and resources in order to help our citizens through these difficult times.
Against this background, the question which all those with political responsibility for education surely need to ask themselves is: what is the place and role of education and training in such a context?
The starting point for any answer to this question must surely lie in regarding human resources as the European Union's main asset. These are central to the creation and transmission of knowledge and a determining factor in each society's potential for innovation. Investment in education and training is more than ever widely acknowledged to be a key factor in the Union's competitiveness, sustainable growth, and employment strategies and therefore a prerequisite for achieving the economic and social goals set in Lisbon for the European Union.
In the same vein, it is essential, as part of the wider process of strengthening the "knowledge triangle" to promote synergies and complementarity between education and other policy areas, such as employment, research and innovation, and macroeconomic policy. It is obvious that such synergies will help, including by means of improved governance in our educational institutions, to make our educational systems more responsive to changes in the labour market and to its actual needs.
For all these reasons, the Czech Presidency believes that education and training must maintain their place among national priorities and that they have a crucial role to play in helping us firstly to weather the storm but, more importantly, to emerge from it stronger and - dare I say - wiser. Of course, when times are hard and resources scarce, there may be a temptation to divert investment away from education and training. And it is clear that national resources are going to be particularly stretched in the period ahead. This indeed is one reason why the Presidency will also emphasise the need to seek new and diversified funding sources - including private ones - for educational institutions. However, as far as possible cutbacks are concerned, past experience in many countries has already shown such measures to be a serious miscalculation and ultimately counter-productive. Even in times of economic difficulty the investment in knowledge and skills needs to be safeguarded, since it is these which will ultimately pave the way towards recovery and prepare citizens to seize new opportunities when they come. Briefly stated, we need to educate and innovate our way back to prosperity.
PRESIDENCY PROGRAMME
Let me now turn to the core element of my intervention today: the Czech Presidency's programme in education and training followed by the programme in the youth field and sports for the coming six months. For education and training we have set ourselves three main priorities:
- first and foremost, to lay the foundations for a new strategic framework for European cooperation in education and training over the next decade;
- secondly, to enhance cooperation and promote partnerships between education institutions on the one hand and employers and enterprises on the other;
- thirdly, to enhance quality and openness of higher education, particularly in the context of the Bologna Process in higher education.
Priority 1
Looking at each of these priorities in detail, let us begin with the development of a new strategic framework for European cooperation in education and training.
While we all agree that the content and organisation of education remain firmly in the hands of Member States, the benefits of cooperating together and exchanging experience have also been clearly demonstrated since implementation began in 2002 of the "Education and Training 2010" work programme, using the open method of coordination.
2009 marks a crucial stage in this process of European cooperation, as the time comes to take stock of that work programme and to start defining our priorities, objectives and tools for the next decade. To support this work, the Commission last month presented its ideas on the subject in the form of a communication. The timing is crucial in another respect, since by starting work on a new strategic framework now, we can anticipate developments later in the year with the broader Lisbon Strategy. A proactive approach of this kind offers the best means of ensuring that - as prerequisites for enhanced competitiveness and greater social cohesion - education and training receive the due attention they deserve and that they remain an integral part of the overall Strategy beyond 2010.
To achieve this goal, the Presidency will adopt a two-stage approach. Firstly, it will prepare a set of key messages for submission to the European Council when it meets again in March. Without prejudging the content of these messages, it is expected that they will focus primarily on issues such as the contribution which education and training can make in the current economic circumstances, on the essential need to develop knowledge and skills as a way of enhancing and sustaining employability and competitiveness, and on the importance of developing a new long-term strategy for continuing European cooperation in these fields.
As the second stage in this process, the Presidency will then draft a set of conclusions on the new framework for adoption by Education Ministers in May. The strategic challenges laid down in the new framework are likely to encompass the following areas:
- Lifelong learning and mobility
- Quality and efficiency
- Active citizenship and equity
- Creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship.
These conclusions - and more especially the new framework they outline - will, it is hoped, cement the foundations for future cooperation between the Member States for many years to come and for the mutual benefit of all.
Priority 2
The second key priority for the Czech Presidency in the field of education is the further enhancement of the links between educational institutions and employers.
As I mentioned earlier, we go through difficult times. This year, 2009, will see reduced rate of growth or negative growth for most European economies, accompanied by a very heavy human cost in terms of lost jobs and reduced real incomes.
However, whilst such negative developments are not desirable, they do provide an opportunity for a genuine reappraisal of how our economies can lay a firm foundation for genuinely sustainable long-term growth. In this context, it is clear that the skills of our citizens are our greatest asset, and therefore that the role of education and training is absolutely vital to Europe's ongoing economic prosperity as the 21st century progresses.
But for our education and training systems to play the key role they need to play in equipping our citizens - our young people primarily but also older persons needing to adapt to new economic realities - they must be linked up more closely to this wider economy, and to employers in particular. This is the essential purpose of the initiative to be taken under the Czech Presidency.
Of course the idea of linking employers more closely to education is not new. At EU level there are at least two policy strands on which this initiative builds. First is the "New Skills for New Jobs" initiative on which the Commission has just adopted a Communication (December 2008) responding to the Council Resolution of November 2007. This initiative makes very clear the importance of equipping all people through education and training with the skills needed in the knowledge-based economoy of the 21st century.
The second EU policy strand is that of university modernisation. This has been a focus since the Informal Ministerial meeting at Hampton Court in 2005 and was last addressed by the Council in its resolution of November 2007. Whilst the modernisation of higher education has a number of distinct elements - not least of which are developing autonomy for universities in their financing and governance - one key aspect concerns the enhancement of links with business and with research. During 2008 the Commission has organised three events within the framework of its European University-Business Forum and plans to adopt a Communication on the subject in April 2009.
So how will the Czech Presidency address this key priority? In policy terms, two points are worth stressing at this stage. First is that, whilst up to now the focus has been on encouraging links between universities and employers, we believe that a broader approach is needed encompassing schools, higher education and vocational training. There is, for example, much to be gained in developing further the opportunities for secondary school children to gain direct experience of different working environments, and awareness of the needs of employers is a vital element in designing education systems at all levels, so that learning outcomes and skills acquired through education have enduring value to the individual in his or her working life. The second point to underline is that, in linking employers more closely to education, the objective is to reinforce social cohesion by providing opportunities for all individuals to prepare themselves better for the demands of the labour market. In this aspect, the twin goals of economic growth and social cohesion go hand in hand, and both will be underpinned by education systems that are more responsive to the needs of employers.
The theme on partnership between educational institutions and employers will be at the heart of two key events during the Czech Presidency. Education ministers will meet in Prague late March in order to have, in an informal setting, a franc exchange of view on this issue. This issue will also be discussed from a more expert-perspective at a Conference on 6 and 7 April which will equally take place in Prague. The latter meeting will be an occasion to receive input from all the relevant stakeholders, as well as to hear the views of government representatives and the Commission.
The ideas generated during these conferences will influence the content of a key set of Council conclusions on the subject, which will be submitted for adoption at the Education Youth and Culture Council of 11 and 12 May.
Priority 3
Our third and final main priority in the education and training field concerns the Bologna Process in higher education. As you know, this is a process which extends far beyond the European Union (it currently involves 46 countries) and which has had and continues to have far-reaching implications for us all in its ambition to create a European Higher Education Area by 2010. Since inception of the process in June 1999, successive ministerial conferences held every two years have been able to note considerable progress, notably in terms of the development of easily readable and comparable degrees, of a three-cycle approach to higher education (bachelor, Masters and doctorate), of a system of transferable credits and of European cooperation in quality assurance.
At their last meeting in London in May 2007, Ministers also adopted an external dimension strategy in response to the growing need to ensure the visibility and openness of European higher education in the world. International contacts and mobility are increasing in numbers and intensity, and so is inter-university cooperation. Thanks to a range of financial assistance programmes, the EU is currently providing support for a broad range of capacity-building measures aimed at modernising the content and practices of higher education in neighbouring countries and bringing their systems into line with the Bologna requirements. Of special importance in this context is the EU's flagship programme for worldwide academic cooperation 'Erasmus Mundus', the second generation of which (2009-2013) has just been adopted thanks to close cooperation between the European Parliament and Council.
In the first half of 2009, it falls to the Czech Presidency to chair the Bologna Board meeting which will pave the way towards this year's ministerial conference, to be held in May in Leuven, Belgium. The conference will take stock not only of developments in the Bologna Process since the London meeting two years ago, but also of its overall progress since 1999. It will then turn to a discussion of priorities beyond 2010, including issues such as further reducing barriers to mobility, ensuring greater recognition of learning outcomes, developing and implementing national qualifications frameworks and quality assurance systems, and continuing to foster strategic cooperation with countries outside the EU.
YOUTH PRIORITIES
At this point I would like to continue with the priorities for the field of youth. The Czech Presidency identifies also for the youth field three main areas of interest:
- first and foremost, to evaluate the European cooperation framework in the youth field;
- secondly, to continue efficient implementation of the European Youth Pact;
- thirdly, to support volunteering and the mobility of young volunteers.
Priority 1
Looking at the first youth priority more in detail, in preparation for the 2009 evaluation of the European cooperation framework in the youth field the Commission asked Member States to evaluate the existing cooperation framework by replying to a questionnaire by 15 October 2008. On the basis of these replies, the Commission is expected to publish a Communication in April 2009 evaluating the existing cooperation framework and making proposals for future cooperation. The Czech Presidency is intending to draft a set of conclusions on the basis of the Commission Communication as well as the replies from the Member States to the Commission questionnaire. The conclusions will mainly focus on the comprehensive evaluation of the existing cooperation framework, including the open method of cooperation, the European Youth Pact and the cross-sectoral approach to issues that concern young people. It will then be up to the Swedish Presidency in the second half of 2009 to arrive at a final agreement on the new framework of cooperation.
Priority 2
In the context of the global financial crisis and the ensuing economic slowdown, the implementation of the Lisbon Strategy for Growth and Jobs is of particular importance.
It is clear that in this situation of bleak economic forecasts young people are particularly vulnerable as they are likely to face more difficulties in entering the labour market and achieving social stability. Several analyses show that youth unemployment remains a problem in many European countries.
Drawing on the analysis and proposals included in the "Lisbon package" adopted by the Commission, the Czech Presidency is intending in its second priority to address the issue of social and professional integration of young people by urging Member States to continue the efficient implementation of the European Youth Pact. The Presidency will draft a set of key messages on the Youth Pact that will be sent to the spring European Council. The key messages will emphasise the particular need to invest in young people in these times of economic and financial crisis. While focusing on structural issues such as youth employment, transition from education to employment and flexicurity strategies the key messages will also call for short-term measures providing support for young people in this crisis situation.
Priority 3
Within our third and final main priority in the youth field, the Presidency is intending to build on the Council Recommendation on the mobility of young volunteers across Europe that was adopted on 20 November 2008 by discussing ways of implementing during a conference on the issue of voluntary activities that will take place in Prague on 12-13 March 2009. The Czech Presidency is particularly interested in voluntary activities in the context of competitiveness which is one of its main Presidency priorities. The facilitation and recognition of voluntary activities can boost youth employment.
You will be also pleased to know that the Presidency supports the idea of 2011 to be declared the European Year of Volunteering. The Presidency finds this a very good initiative since it would raise awareness about volunteering both among those potentially interested in taking part in voluntary activities and those "employing" volunteers. Such a year would also serve to promote volunteering which presents invaluable opportunities for learning and self-development. Voluntary activities also contribute to social cohesion, solidarity and community development which is particularly important in times of economic downturn.
SPORTS PRIORITIES
With regard to the field of sports, the Czech Presidency is aware of the fact that sport faces transnational threats and obstacles such as doping, violence, commercial pressures, exploitation of young players, etc. However, it is necessary to choose such a form of international cooperation, which will respect the principles of autonomy and specificity of sport as defined in the Declaration on the Specific Characteristics of Sport adopted by the European Council in Nice in 2000. The Czech Presidency will focus on identifying these forms of cooperation.
With regard to the White Paper on Sport and Action Plan of Pierre de Coubertine, the Czech Presidency will focus on indentifying the current state of affairs, time-tested good practice of voluntary work in the Member States and on supporting opportunities in the field of sports. Experience of national experts and synergies within the youth field will be made use of too.
CONCLUDING REMARKS
By way of conclusion of my presentation of the Presidency's education programme, I want to say a few words about cooperation between our respective institutions. 2008 was a year in which much was achieved thanks to particularly close collaboration between Parliament, Council and the Commission: the new Erasmus Mundus programme [to which I have already referred] and a new Regulation on the European Training Foundation were formally adopted in time to begin, as initially scheduled, on 1 January. In addition, agreement was reached on two long-awaited instruments in the field of vocational education and training - the ECVET credit system and its sister recommendation for a European Quality Assurance Reference Framework. During our Presidency - chiefly for cyclical reasons - the workload in this area is expected to be much lighter and consequently the opportunities for cooperation more limited. Nevertheless, some work remains to be done on the two recommendations and I can therefore assure you that the Czech Presidency will continue the tradition of maintaining a close working relationship with the Parliament and Commission and nurturing the healthy spirit of cooperation which the issues of education and training deserve.
Madam Chair, Honourable Members, Ladies and Gentlemen,
thank you all very much for you attention.
Dernière mise à jour : 16.8.2011 15:51
