The German Council Presidency presents the draft of the Osnabrück Declaration for a future-proof vocational education and training (VET) system in Europe.
European education ministers met from 16 to 17 September 2020 for an informal exchange in Osnabrück, Germany to outline the future of VET across Europe.
Along with representatives of the European Commission (EC) and the EU member states, the four EFTA states’ education ministers, including Swiss State Secretary for Education, Research and Innovation Martina Hirayama, were invited to take part in the two-day programme. The main goal was to share experiences and good practices in initial and continuing VET with a focus on sustainability, digital participation, educational mobility and the digital transformation of VET. In order to take the dialogue further, the chair of the informal meeting, German Federal Minster of Education Anja Karliczek, introduced a draft proposal for the ‘Osnabrück Declaration’.
Societal and economic challenges including digitalisation, climate change and demographic change, and current developments such as the Covid-19 pandemic in particular have revealed the need for a modernisation of VET and continued investment in upskilling and reskilling. In line with the ambitions of the EC’s recently published European Skills Agenda and the German Council Presidency’s priorities for education, research and innovation, the Osnabrück Declaration means to reinforce the commitments of the Copenhagen process launched in 2002 by focusing on four priorities as well as specific activities to meet the challenges in VET. Apart from enhancing employability for young people and adults, the declaration aims at developing excellent VET and at facilitating the transfer between academic and vocational education. Furthermore, the declaration will not only strengthen transnational cooperation within the envisioned European Education Area by strengthening networks and funding measures such as Erasmus+ but also promote a culture of lifelong learning.
German Federal Minister of Education Anja Karliczek summarised the outcome of the exchanges in Osnabrück: “We want to increase economic resilience, work together to establish a culture of lifelong learning, embed the principles of sustainability within vocational education and training, and strengthen the international dimension through cross-border mobility. The process for further developing vocational education and training in Europe has been put into motion here in Osnabrück.”
The declaration is currently in a consultation phase and planned to be adopted during the official Education, Youth, Culture and Sports Council meeting on 30 November 2020.