Education Council conclusions aim to provide more opportunities for young people

The EYCS (Education, Youth, Culture and Sports) Council has approved a set of conclusions on investing in Europe’s young, with a focus on education and employment opportunities. The conclusions were adopted by all member states during the Council’s education meeting, held yesterday in Brussels.

The council meeting, chaired by Education and Employment Minister Evarist Bartolo, discussed measures to mitigate educational inequalities due to socio-economic disparities, as shown by the 2015 PISA results. They also considered how the education and training programmes of EU member states could be improved through the establishment of national and European objectives. This discussion was inspired by the Council’s conclusion document entitled Inclusion in Diversity, presented by the Maltese Presidency during the EYCS Council.

The conclusion includes a number of measures aimed at improving the skills of young people in the light of the growing skills gap challenges that Europe is facing, as well as incentives towards employment growth among young people, and learning mobility.

EU education ministers emphasised that education policies play a fundamental role in promoting inclusion and respect for diversity in the EU and that the fundamental values of the EU and the European education model must be preserved. Ensuring inclusive high-quality education should also be perceived as a life-long journey covering all aspects of education.

Minister Evarist Bartolo emphasised that “improving our education and training systems is critical, not only because it can generate economic benefits and reduce unemployment, but also because it promotes social mobility and remains one of the best means of preventing social exclusion. Education in itself cannot do all, it needs economic, social and financial support”.

Ministers for Education, Youth, Culture and Sport, together with Commissioner Tibor Navracsics, positively welcomed the recommendations presented in the Council conclusion document put forward by the Maltese Presidency. Both the Commissioner and the Council commented positively on the relevance and high-quality of the document prepared by Malta. They also referred to the importance that the document gives to having an inclusive education. This theme led to a fruitful debate among ministers that was characterised by a frank exchange on the the current challenges in education and best practices vis-à-vis a more inclusive education system.