EAEA calls on EU Member States to invest in adult education structures in the framework of the Recovery and Resilience Facility.
29.09.2020 advocacy, financing

Let’s use the Recovery and Resilience Facility for Adult Learning and Education!

EAEA welcomes the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF), which was presented on 17 September 2020. The RRF will provide a total of €672.5 billion to support investment and reforms, and one of the flagships is Re- and Upskilling. ‘This is a great opportunity to strengthen and invest in adult learning and education (ALE) in Europe. EAEA calls on the EU Member States to foresee a budget for ALE in their plans,’ says Uwe Gartenschlaeger, President of the EAEA.

Read the EAEA statement here.

EAEA calls on the European Commission to

  • evaluate national reform plans of EU Member States on the basis of their responding to the country-specific recommendations, especially also concerning the promotion of adult learning and education;
  • ensure that key objectives are met during the implementation phase of the programmes;
  • ensure that Member States involve civil society in all phases of the programme design and implementation.

EAEA calls on the EU Member States to

  • ensure that their national reform plans tackle the issues highlighted in the country-specific recommendations of 2019 and 2020, especially the recommendations concerning the promotion of adult learning and education;
  • use this unique opportunity to strengthen national and regional lifelong learning and adult education systems through coherent strategies and investment in the sector;
  • involve civil society in decision-making processes on the national reform plans as well as in the implementation phase of the programmes;
  • adopt a holistic approach to adult learning, in which formal and non-formal learning have their equal place and where “life skills” – including digital skills and sustainability skills/green skills – are central.

EAEA calls on its members to

  • contact their national authorities (ministries or other decision-making bodies) to ensure that they are consulted on the preparation of the national recovery and resilience plans.

Text: EAEAPhotos: EAEA

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