Recalling our statement of September 2023, EAEA welcomes the decision of the European Council to extend the timeframe for the implementation of the European Education Area (EEA) from five to ten years until 2030. This extension will be beneficial for the achievement of the priorities and benchmarks set. The creation of the New European Agenda for Adult Learning (NEAAL), a key demand of EAEA, is particularly welcomed. With appropriate support, this agenda has the potential to significantly increase participation in adult learning to 60% by 2030. However, EAEA insists that all adults, including those who are not/no longer in employment, older people, and people with disabilities, people with parenting and caregiving responsibilities, are included in the European strategies, emphasising the importance of lifelong learning for social inclusion and active and healthy ageing.
More inclusion and adequate financial resources
EAEA stresses the essential role of adult learning and education (ALE) in reaching new learners and providing flexible learning pathways for all through guidance and validation of prior learning. Non-formal ALE must be recognised as a key education sector that empowers learners by making learning accessible and enjoyable. To achieve this, EAEA calls for an increase in financial and structural resources and emphasises the need for stable public funding, especially for smaller ALE providers.
Promoting a wide range of skills, strengthening democracy
EAEA emphasises the importance of developing basic and transversal skills of adults in order to reduce functional illiteracy, innumeracy and digital exclusion across Europe and to help young adults in particular to develop learning-to-learn capacities for better and more effective improvement of competences necessary for work and life. Life skills and competences play a central role for social inclusion and empowerment, but also creativity, innovation and problem-solving in Europe to achieve a just green and digital transition and to meet future challenges.
EAEA also calls for a stronger focus on science, citizenship and democracy education and a strengthening of intersectional approaches to combat misinformation, xenophobia, racism, anti-Semitism and gender-based discrimination as well as all other kinds of discrimination and to promote active citizenship and democratic engagement. Especially in view of the political polarization trends and increasingly difficult framework conditions for civic participation in many European countries, citizenship and democracy education must be recognised as central components of ALE and promoted accordingly in order to foster a more open and cohesive society.