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MMC Action Plan

The MMC Action Plan was developed by the Department of Futher and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science (DFHERIS), in partnership with industry and education providers. It was launched jointly by the Ministers for DFERHIS, Housing, Heritage and Local Government, and Enterprise, Tourism and Employment, as well as the Minister of State for Further Education, Apprenticeship, Construction and Climate Skills, as a cross-government initiative.

MMC Demonstration Park

The...

The AMTCE is part of LMETB's FET provision as a centre of excellence, delivering a range of learning options with world class facilities for Industry 4.0 standard, funded by SOLAS as the national agency for FET.

The Centre delivers both full awards and micro qualifications to the employed and jobseekers in Robotics and Collaborative Robotics, Advanced Construction Technologies, Additive Manufacturing and 3D Printing, Cybersecurity, ICT Innovations, Manufacturing Engineering, Advanced...

The VET & LLL Strategy 2025–2027 was developed through a comprehensive process that combined legal reform, labour-market intelligence, stakeholder consultation, and system-level analysis. The new framework operationalises the strategic objectives through a series of targeted actions designed to modernise the system, enhance quality, strengthen inclusion, and align VET pathways with emerging economic and social needs.

To support Strategic Objective 1 (Holistic upgrading of VET & LLL and...

The consultation process for QQI is similar to the Irish parliamentary processes of Green and White Papers. Where QQI issues a Green Paper, this is the first consultation of policy proposals for debate and discussion as part of the consultation with stakeholders. A White Paper follows a Green Paper and is the draft outline of the policy proposed. Both papers undergo full public and stakeholder consultation processes.

The Green Paper, QQI Green Paper on Intermediate Qualifications at NFQ...

Learn with NALA (LWN)

The LWN programme is offered on a national scale and is free to learners. It offers learners the chance to learn at their own pace, with additional supports such as telephone learning with an individual tutor.

In addition to direct delivery to individual learners, the LWN programme is also designed to complement face to face teaching and learning with registered VET centres to enhance the digital offering and to support face to face learning with additional digital...

The National Training Fund (Amendment) Bill 2025 was published in October and is at the fifth (final) stage of the lower house of the Irish Parliament.

Respondents to the public consultation were asked to consider a number of questions, which were:

1. What should be the primary objectives of the Tertiary Education Strategy?
2. What should be the actions of the strategy?
3. How to make the tertiary education system more adaptable and responsive to emerging challenges and changing contexts?
4. Which outcomes will define the success of the Tertiary Education Strategy?
5. What are the specific barriers or enablers to enhancing the system’s focus on impact...

According to the VET Act of 2019, the Minister for VET, through the IKK Innovative Training Support Centre, is responsible for operating the VET information centre.

Pursuant to the VET Act and the Government Decree on its implementation, the website operated within the framework of the VET Information and Communication Centre shall publish the following:

1. the programme and outcome requirements;
2. the registered programme requirements and decisions on their deletion;
3. the titles, dates, and...

In April 2025, the Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities launched an open call to co-finance two multi-year Career Centres for Youth+ (KCM+) projects, aiming to expand access to high-quality career guidance across Slovenia by establishing two regional consortia that form a coordinated network of youth career centres.

In the Western cohesion region, the lead partner is the Public Institute Cene Štupar – Centre for Education Ljubljana, implementing the project...

The project ‘Increasing access to vocational education and training for third-country nationals’ aims to increase the accessibility and inclusiveness of VET so that quality VET and related services can be provided to third-country nationals, enabling them to integrate successfully into the labour market.

During the project’s implementation, it is planned that methodological and practical instruments for VET curricula are developed and tested, and that curricula are adapted accordingly. This...

Systematic evaluation plans are essential elements in ensuring quality in the design of public policies.

Royal Decree 659/2023 established the Technical committee for quality and evaluation of vocational training and enabled creating the Spanish framework for quality assurance of the VET system and the state system of indicators for evaluating VET.

The Technical committee for quality and evaluation of vocational training (Comité Técnico de Calidad y Evaluación de Formación Profesional) is a...

On December 14, 2021, a call was announced for public universities with the aim of adapting the content and forms of teaching to digital transformation and the changing needs of the labour market. The two-year´ project (2022 – 2024) involved 26 Czech public universities coordinated by Charles University to share experiences and work systematically on the development of an analytical and methodological framework, along with supporting information systems, for the implementation of the...

A review was conducted in partnership with the OECD. The review concentrated on four areas:

• balance in skills;
• lifelong learning;
• innovation;
• governance.

The report identified four priorities:

Priority 1: Securing a balance in skills through a responsive and diversified supply of skills.

Priority 2: Fostering greater participation in lifelong learning in and outside the workplace.

Priority 3: Leveraging skills to drive innovation and strengthen firm performance.

Priority 4: Strengthening skills...

The ‘employment-training pathway’ supports large Brussels companies (or clusters of smaller companies) that are planning to recruit at least eight people for specific positions and requiring training. These companies work with Bruxelles Formation to create a tailor-made training pathway.

The principle of the ‘training-employment pathway’ is the pooling of financial, human or material resources to pursue an objective inherent in the missions of Bruxelles Formation, and which takes the...

The position paper of this policy is underpinned by a Universal Design (UD) approach and aligns with the Public Sector Equality and Human Rights Duty.

The Framework to implement the policy outlines the enhancement of the overall learner experience within FET by:

1. develop & standardise supports and apply good practices;
2. integrate supports via Universal Design (UD);
3. technology to address support needs;
4. more consistent & reflective financial supports;
5. cross-FET Programme Independent Learner...

The strategy was developed by SOLAS, in partnership with consultants KPMG and in consultation with Ireland’s sixteen (16) Education and Training Boards (ETBs), public bodies, government departments and key industry stakeholders. The strategy examines crucial sectors including construction, agriculture, transport, energy, hospitality, and finance, identifies critical skills gaps, and presents strategic and sector specific recommendations. The strategy also outlines ways in which FET can...

Developing the framework was a collective and collaborative process by the whole of the FET sector, focussing on the needs of learners, who were also a key stakeholder and consulted during the process of drafting the framework.

A writing group was set up that included many different stakeholders in the FET Sector. This group was an important space to discuss ideas and challenges and was imperative for shaping the final content.

There was a 12-month development process, comprising four...

The above report was carried out under the direction of the National VET Team. VET Team is a national panel of key experts from across the Further Education and Training sector that advises Léargas on VET practice, policy, recognition and accreditation of skills. The purpose of the VET Team is to promote and support the implementation of EU VET tools in projects funded by Erasmus+.

The report explored the concept of transversal skills to establish consensus in terms of definition and identify...

The 2023 Innovation and Collaboration Fund was EUR 1 million, with the maximum grant of EUR 50 000.

Organisations that work in the public, not-for-profit, community and voluntary sector were eligible to apply. A minimum of two organisations working together in partnership were required to make an application, with one organisation as the lead applicant, and the other organisation(s) as the partner(s).

The target groups for the ALL Innovation and Collaboration Fund included:

• older adults...

The National Organisation for the Certification of Qualifications and Vocational Guidance (EOPPEP) represents Greece in various EU initiatives and networks. As the National Reference Point (NRP) of the European Network of Quality Assurance in VET (EQAVET), EOPPEP actively participates in Erasmus+ funded projects specifically designed for EQAVET NRPs.

In its role as an EQAVET NRP, EOPPEP is authorised to implement the Erasmus+ project, Continuing Vocational Training Link to Microcredentials...

The amendment to the Act on employment services established the Sector Councils Alliance (SCA) as the interest association of legal entities. Membership is stipulated by law containing labour and education ministry representatives, representative associations of employers and representative associations of trade unions. Admission of other members is possible based on the statute of the SCA agreed with the government.

According to law, the SCA ‘establishes sectoral councils covering relevant...

The National Plan for Labour, Occupational Safety and Employment 2021-2027, under the objective Strengthening workforce competences, defines the following measures relevant for VET:

1. mapping skills relevant to the labour market as a basis for developing educational programmes and awarding vouchers;
2. identifying workforce skills to support lifelong guidance and career development;
3. developing occupational standards in line with the Croatian Qualifications Framework to align education with labour...

The Policy for the digital transformation of education describes the actions necessary in the face of the digital revolution and sets the framework for state policy in the area of​ ​the digitalisation of education in the following time perspectives: short-term (until 2027), medium-term (until 2030) and long-term (until 2035 ).

It comprises two complementary perspectives: developing digital competences of students and teachers, using digital technologies to strengthen...

The initiative foresees the development and use of special diagnostic tools, along with the training of specialists to integrate them into daily practice. It also includes the provision of educational institutions with necessary equipment and tools and the establishment of specialised multisensory resting rooms.

The initiative's primary focus is to provide direct support to students in need, by equipping them with tools to assess their abilities and facilitating their adaptation to the...

The target groups of the Database include all the adults with links to the labour market (including students aged 18+ who are preparing to enter the labour market). The Labour Office has expanded its activities beyond unemployed persons to include those who are in employment and want to acquire the competences needed to retain their current jobs. Additional target groups include persons on parental leave, self-employed persons and senior citizens with links to the labour market (working...

The Ministry of Labour and Social Solidarity has drafted the National strategy for adult training 2024-27. The strategy was approved by the Government in December 2023. The strategy development was co-financed by the EU (Erasmus+). During the design phase, the labour ministry consulted employers, professional training providers, social partners, regional employment agencies, and NGOs.

The cooperation pillar of the strategy focuses on updating legislation and strengthening the role of...

The purpose of the Skills reform committee is to make structured proposals so that skills reform contributes to the development of skills for the green transition, increased innovation and competitiveness and good public welfare services. The reform will help to reduce recruitment challenges and prevent dropouts from working life as a result of a lack of skills. The work of the committee must embrace all groups in working life, and the committee must come up with proposals for measures that...

The pilot implementation started in the construction sector. It involved an analysis of existing ILA schemes in Europe and national feasibility study, simulations, an online portal (linked to the existing training provider authorisation platform), promotional campaigns, and a study on the use of ILA.

ESF+ and other funds are to support the implementation as of 2025. The implementation will initially last until 2027.

Main beneficiaries of ILA are the construction sector employees and jobseekers...

The cooperation with the OECD, with its methodology for skills strategies, is an action decided in the context of the proposals of the European Skills Agenda in relation to national skills strategies. More precisely, the European skills agenda recommends joint action by the Commission and EU Member States to develop national skills strategies based on the relevant OECD methodology.

Activities related to the development of the skills strategy are also reflected in the national documents within...

To facilitate the introduction of individual learning accounts (ILAs) in Bulgaria, the Bulgarian Industrial Capital Association (BICA), developed two pilot models for ILAs.

According to the first model employers may create individual accounts for their employees. These accounts record the qualifications and skills gained through training. It encourages’ enterprises to invest in their employees by contributing to these accounts.

The second model envisaged sectoral funds or one state fund to...

The coherent plan for the education system consists of different reforms and initiatives across the entire education system thus targeting a wide array of groups. Although the plan is not an explicit national implementation plan (NIP) measure, many of its initiatives could be considered relevant touching upon various EU priorities. More precisely the intervention areas are the following:

1. Prepared for the future I – new flexible university paths.This reform aims to provide students with new...

The process of review started in 2019 with the agreement on the guiding principles and approach. An international expert panel was appointed, with an internal funding model review advisory group and data modelling working group established to support the panel’s work.

The review panel had to review the existing approach to funding ETBs to deliver FET by SOLAS in terms of its effectiveness in delivering on national objectives, facilitating ETB flexibility and autonomy in responding to regional...

Creating a unified tertiary system is one of the strategic priorities of the National FET strategy 2020-24. Key stakeholders, DES, Quality and Qualifications Ireland (QQI), SOLAS (the national authority for FET), Higher Education Authority (HEA), Education and Training Boards Ireland (ETBI), the Technological Higher Education Association (THEA) and the Irish Universities Association (IUA) agreed on an action plan to work towards a more strategic and consistent transitions approach to FET and...

The National FET Strategy defined that CotFs should have the following characteristics:

1. consolidation: CotFs are single integrated colleges;
2. dual outcome focus: the offer of courses designed to facilitate immediate entry to careers and employment and those that link directly to further study in HE, exploring opportunities for co-delivery with HE institutions;
3. access pathways: supporting a learning pathway from a network of FET providers offering Level 1 to 4 provision;
4. consistent learner...

Ireland’s Action Plan for Apprenticeship 2021-25 was launched in 2021 by the Ministers for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science and the Minister of State for Skills and Further Education. The plan aims to expand the types of programmes available and increase the number of apprenticeships to 10 000 per year by 2025. The plan is to ensure equity of access by creating simplified routes to entry, and improved flexibility within the system so that underrepresented...

The external review is conducted by review teams. National and international external reviewers are selected for their expertise in one or more specific areas, providing perspectives from education and training, quality assurance, learner voice, community and industry. SOLAS and the Adult Learning Association (AONTAS) provide support to the review teams.

The external review examines the following aspects:

Governance and management of quality

The review evaluates the comprehensive oversight...

The DLH is located in the south of Luxembourg. On its 700 m2, the Hub offers open and multi-purpose spaces and multifunctional classrooms, an amphitheatre and computer laboratories dedicated to networks, cybersecurity and product design and prototyping. A virtual infrastructure can be used to create working environments of all kinds, simulating a wide range of operating systems, software and usage scenarios such as cyber-attacks. The DLH favours face-to-face learning, but all training can...

The action plan includes the following five specific measures:

1. implementing the integrated skills strategy through the development of professional skills in formal and non-formal education, including skills related to green and digital transitions;
2. provision and professional development of staff for the VET system;
3. the development of career guidance and promotion of VET;
4. implementation of innovative and durable mechanisms of cooperation at national and international levels in VET, favouring...

The System of vocational qualifications (SVQ) (σύστημα επαγγελματικών προσόντων, ΣΕΠ) is based on Vocational qualification standards (VQS) (πρότυπα των επαγγελματικών πρόσοντων, ΠΕΠ) developed by the Human Resource Development Authority of Cyprus (HRDA) with the assistance of vocational qualifications technical committees. The SVQ assesses in real or simulated working conditions the ability of a person to carry out specific tasks according to a VQS. At the same time, the SVQ sets out the...

The Cyprus operational programme THALIA 2021-27 includes two relevant HRDA actions.

Individual learning accounts (ILAs) provide credits to eligible groups of employed and unemployed individuals to attend training programmes and acquire new and/or upgrade existing knowledge and skills. They aim to promote lifelong learning by providing flexible upskilling opportunities and preventing social exclusion. Through ILAs, individuals gain access to training programmes on a broad range of issues...

Four HRDA training schemes were included in the RRP:

1. Training programmes for the acquisition of digital skills.
   The scheme caters for the acquisition of new and/or upgrading existing digital skills in the Cyprus workforce (public and private sector employees, the self-employed and the unemployed), through participation in training programmes to be implemented by accredited VTCs. Total budget allocation: EUR 6.1million and 13 000 participations.
2. Training programmes for the acquisition of...

To address skills mismatches between education and the labour market, the Ministry of Education, Sport and Youth decided to establish a project management committee comprising various stakeholders (e.g. representatives from the ministry, employer and employee organisations and SMEs, representatives from schools and universities), with a mandate to develop, implement and monitor a comprehensive strategy to address skills mismatches, based on evidence from reports, studies and policy...

Eight priority areas were identified in relation to the achievement of the objectives, five of which explicitly target VET, two target lifelong learning in parallel with VET ((f) and (h)) and one targets interlinking general education and VET (e):

1. centres of excellence in VET;
2. in-company training centres;
3. higher VET transformation;
4. quality assurance in IVET and CVET;
5. prevention of early school leaving;
6. basic skills;
7. individual learning accounts;
8. a new system of lifelong learning introduced...

The following measures are foreseen:

1. diversifying professional and training choices for vulnerable groups;
2. supporting SEN learners in schools and in providing employment supported by guidance and counselling;
3. supporting students with a native language other than Estonian, including those from a migrant background, in learning Estonian and providing additional Estonian language tuition;
4. reforming support systems for SEN students, including aligning information systems to support flexible...

The National strategy for employment 2021-27 outlines an integrated vision of labour market demand and supply policies.

It was designed to respond to the European priorities set in the European package of measures for more social cohesion and in the European Green deal promoting measures to address climate change challenges, and to the national priorities set to diminish and limit the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the economy and labour market.

The strategy was developed in a challenging...

There are different kinds of initiatives and events to promote and disseminate VET:

Professional Education and Training Campaigns (Campanha de Educação e Formação)

The campaign targets young people who are in the ninth grade (13-15 years old) when taking an informed and well-guided choice is of the utmost importance. Civil society, and particularly parents and guardians of young people in the third cycle of basic education are also target groups. It will promote vocational education as...

In September 2021, the IEFP signed a financing agreement for the application of EUR 230 million with the Estrutura de Missão Recuperar Portugal, the body responsible for negotiating, contracting and monitoring the implementation of the national recovery plan, as part of the implementation of the investment Modernisation of the supply and of the educational and vocational training facilities.

The financing contract runs until 31 December 2025. It aims to provide 22 000 training workshop...

According to the Government Strategic Analysis Centre (STRATA) study University, college or vocational training institution?, based on data retrieved from the 2013/14 school year to the 2018/19 school year, the number of students who chose to study in vocational education institutions together with second part of the basic education programme education has doubled. The number of students who chose to study only according to initial vocational education programmes (ISCED 2) has been...

The local projects promoting qualifications - an adult education and training offer tailored to the needs of the different territories - focus on the motivation of citizens with a low level of education and literacy, which are generally more difficult to engage in training or schooling activities. The target group is adults with very low qualifications (less than ninth grade, including no schooling).

These projects, promoted by the Qualifica centres are based on partnership networks with...

Apprenticeship courses allow for academic and vocational certification, emphasising inclusion in the job market, boosted by a strong training component undertaken in a work context and pursuing higher-level studies. Although dual learning has a strong tradition in Portugal, increased requirements for workers' skills and the need to deal with accelerated scientific and technological development led to a new generation of apprenticeship programmes (Programas de Aprendizagem).

Apprenticeship...

Professional programmes (cursos profissionais) are IVET upper secondary education programmes leading to EQF level 4 (academic and professional certification); they are part of compulsory education and of the formal education and training system. They target graduates of basic education aged between 15 and 18, including NEETs and learners at risk of early leaving, who would like to attend a practical programme linked to the labour market. They last three years (from 3 100 to 3 440 hours)....

Technological specialisation courses (CET) are a modality of education and training at post-secondary non-tertiary levels that enables specialised training paths in different technological areas, developing professional skills. These courses, leading to an EQF level 5, are referenced to the national qualifications catalogue. The qualification is obtained through the combination of a general or professional secondary education with a post-secondary technical education.

CET are designed for...

Modular training courses (Formação Modular Certificada) are addressed to adults aged 18 and over, employed or unemployed, who do not have the appropriate qualifications to enter or progress in the labour market, especially, those who have yet to complete basic or upper secondary education.

This is a modality that allows flexible training paths, through the realisation and certification of competence units and/or short duration training units (UFCD), that can be capitalised to obtain one, or...

This measure is part of INCODE.2030. The Portugal digital academy is a national initiative that aims to bring digital competences to all Portuguese people including migrants), investing in inclusion and digital literacy, in the education of new generations, in the qualification of the active population, in advanced and specialised training of senior staff and in research. It is a free course aggregator platform where all citizens can improve their digital competences regardless of age. The...

Individuals eligible for unemployment benefits (regardless of their origin, as the right applies to people with foreign qualifications according to applicable provisions) generally have the right to take advantage of this measure.

The right is extended to both skilled and unskilled individuals. Whether someone is considered skilled or unskilled typically depends on their completion of upper secondary education, either general or vocational. However, the key factor in determining a person’s...

The regional education fund provides grants for municipalities to purchase short vocational training courses. The purpose of the regional education fund is to support more unemployed people being offered guidance and upskilling by the job centre in the form of short, vocational courses from the first day of unemployment. The overarching legal framework for the regional education fund is the Act on Active Labour Market Initiatives (LAB) and it is regulated by the Executive order BEK No 1974...

Under the job rotation scheme private and public companies are entitled to receive a job rotation allowance when an employee temporarily participates in continuing education/upskilling and an unemployed is hired as a substitute for the employee during the training period. The company pays the employees their usual salary for the entire training period, as well as any expenses related to the course. The temporary employee must receive a salary according to the labour agreement for the hours...

In 2017, a committee of experts was set up by the Danish parliament to address the declining number of applications to IVET and to rethink pathways that would facilitate the transition from compulsory schooling to IVET.

By 2018, the committee’s recommendations were accepted by a majority in parliament, leading to the creation of the Executive Order of the Act on Preparatory Basic Education (FGU). This law provides the framework for education programmes targeted at young people under 25 who...

According to the requirements of the Employment Promotion Act, the national employment plans are prepared every year by a working group with the participation of experts from the responsible institutions, the social partners and the non-governmental sector. They are agreed by the social partners, members of the National Council for Employment Promotion and the National Council for Tripartite Cooperation and are adopted by a Decision of the Council of Ministers.

Priority target groups of the...

The National strategy for regional development 2030 (NSRD) was adopted by the Council of Ministers on 17 September 2019. One of the objectives of the strategy is the development of human and social capital in the following subareas: vocational and higher education, continuing education, labour market and social capital. The strategy outlines several initiatives in these areas:

1. establishing mechanisms to encourage universities to cooperate with entrepreneurs;
2. increasing entrepreneurs’...

The Labour ministry is redesigning its approach to vocational education and training (VET) especially to RRF-funded continuing VET (CVET) programmes.

The main philosophy and rationale of the approach is that VET programmes should upskill and/or reskill unemployed individuals in high-demand specialties, in digital and green skills. Another aspect of the renewed approach is that after completion of training, certification by independent and international awarding bodies should be obligatory.

To...

The six strategic objectives of the plan are further analysed into sub-objectives that serve the effective implementation of the strategy.

More specifically, the implementation of the first strategic objective, Development and strengthening of VET and LLL with emphasis on quality assurance, is achieved through the following sub-objectives:

1. increasing the attractiveness of VET through the creation of new opportunities;
2. design of VET and LLL programmes and their quality assurance;
3. investment in...

Under the Equal start initiative, the following developments are foreseen:

1. development of a network of regional career centres that would ensure provision of career guidance services starting from early years pupils and accessible to all age groups;
2. creation of a centralised system for the recognition of formal, non-formal and informal learning, facilitating transition from one level of education to another;
3. creation of a model for a joint lifelong learning system, including the principles...

COVID-19 caused a delay in studies for many students. To recover from these delays, the Dutch government has made EUR 8.5 billion available for a national education support programme for recovery and perspective (Nationaal Programma Onderwijs: steunprogramma voor herstel en perspectief, NPO), of which EUR 2.7 billion has been reserved for measures in upper secondary vocational education programmes. Over the next 2 school years (2020/21 and 2021/22), VET colleges may choose from a menu of...

Investment in education, training and lifelong skills development brings benefits both to individuals and to society as a whole. Education is the engine for job creation, economic growth, improved social conditions and prosperity.

The strategy focuses on the modernisation of the adult education system by creating opportunities for the use of digital technologies, as well as by increasing the digital skills and competences of the workforce for full participation in digital education and the...

The Lifelong learning and counselling strategy for 2021-30, approved by the government on 24 November 2021, addresses early school leaving in the section ‘Second chance education and F-type programmes’. It suggests four measures aimed at:

1. transformation of former F-type programmes into ‘combined’ programmes that allow learners to complete lower secondary general education and earn at least an EQF level 2 VET qualification, enabling progression in initial VET;
2. allowing exceptional extension...

The following five measures are set by the Lifelong learning and counselling strategy for 2021-30:

1. embedding the term ‘basic skills’ in the Lifelong Learning Act;
2. piloting tools for mapping, assessing and testing basic skill levels of low-skilled adults;
3. improving the digital skills of citizens in line with Reform 6 of Component 17 ‘Digital Slovakia’ of the National recovery and resilience plan;
4. piloting a financing scheme for supporting non-formal learning for low-skilled adults in...

The amendment to the Vocational Training Act in 2020 (Section 7a BBiG), makes it possible to organise part-time vocational training individually in terms of time. In addition to single parents or individuals caring for family members, the option of part-time training is further opened up to additional groups. People with disabilities or refugees, for example, who want to or have to pursue gainful employment next to their training, can now also benefit from the option of part-time vocational...

The White paper (Meld. St. 32 (2020-21), approved on June 2021, presents a comprehensive policy to include more people in working life and society.

The government has identified six areas where there is a need to continue to develop and strengthen efforts to prevent social exclusion and include more people in working life and society: they include better coordination between education, work and health, and better adaptation for users with extensive and complex challenges.

The government...

The reform will include more options for completing upper secondary education, including for adults, along with more relevant training and a right to apprenticeship in VET.

All students in upper secondary education, including both IVET and CVET, will benefit from the policy development.

These are the most important measures foreseen in the Completion reform:

1. everyone who starts upper secondary school will have the right to complete an upper secondary degree;
2. training courses will be better...

The VET agreement is to be a common ground of a tripartite understanding, between the government and the social partners, in the following areas of intervention:

1. regulation and governance of the vocational training system (framework and regulation, regulation model and financing sources and quality improvement);
2. further development of the system’s instruments and responsiveness (improve the flexibility of the SNQ, strengthen responses to sectoral needs and dynamics and improve incentives...

The project is based around a strategy for sharing classes between schools (a class, in some subjects, may have students from different schools), under a pedagogical experience regime, aimed at promoting the diversification of the educational and training offer in low-density areas.

The schools involved in the pilot should define tutoring mechanisms that, in permanent dialogue with the families, allow close and systematic monitoring of the learners, both in pedagogical and organisational...

The approach underlying the National anti-poverty strategy goes far beyond the definition of poverty as the deprivation of monetary resources, avoiding approaches focused solely on the analysis from a monetary point of view and seeking to make poverty reduction dependent only on economic growth. It is based on a broader vision of poverty, assuming poverty as a complex and multidimensional phenomenon, which constitutes a violation of human and citizen rights and requires integrated action...

With the ESF Plus education municipalities programme, the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) supports districts and independent cities in the further development of their education landscape. One thematic focus of the programme is the establishment of digital-analogue networked education landscapes for lifelong learning. Local education authorities also choose specific thematic priorities, for example, in the area of cultural education, democracy building/political education,...

In the Cabinet’s response, 14 measures were announced that focus on tackling youth unemployment and preventing early leaving from education and training. The most significant measures that focus on employment are:

1. making explicit which bodies are responsible at a local and regional level;
2. supporting life coaching arrangements;
3. promoting guidance for young people after graduation.

The country’s approach to tackling youth unemployment caused by the pandemic has a regional focus and primarily...

Diplom+ is a customised training programme bridging the transition between school and employment or higher education targeting recent graduates at EQF 4 (both general and vocational programmes), neither in employment or higher education. Diplom+ is a cycle of individually certifying training modules on transversal skills in high demand on the labour market, skills applicable in higher education and everyday life skills. Participants are accompanied on demand by individual coaching sessions....

The total budget of the youth plan is EUR 6.7 billion, with measures to support young people aged 16-25 after the COVID-19 crisis. It mobilises a set of tools: hiring assistance, training, support, financial assistance for struggling young people, etc. to respond to different situations.

Under priority 1 – facilitating entry into working life;

1. compensation of EUR 4 000 of costs to the businesses for any young person recruited between 1 August 2020 and 31 March 2021;
2. exceptional support to recruit...

The programme to develop quality and equality in VET is mainly implemented through comprehensive development projects funded by the Ministry of Education and Culture and the Finnish National Agency for Education. The projects are mainly wide-ranging network projects with one coordinator. This secures the efficient direction of the projects and the transition of the results as part of national development and VET provider everyday routine.

In 2020, the Walloon government adopted an action plan aiming to boost a new dynamic in vocational training, to make it an essential lever in terms of professional integration and economic recovery. The action plan will be part of the recovery plans and programmes adopted by governments as well as the new European skills strategy in favour of sustainable competitiveness, social equity and resilience.

This plan is made up of one structural axis and six distinct operational axes aimed at...

On 14 July 2016, the Brussels Regional Government and the French-speaking Brussels Government adopted a Note on the creation of training and employment centres (Pôles Formation Emploi) in the Brussels Region. Since then, the governments of the Brussels Region and the French Community Commission COCOF have adopted several structuring principles for the creation, governance and operation of training and employment centres.

Established on a sectoral basis, these centres are the result of a...

Under the Decree of 20/02/2014 and the Decree of the Walloon Government of 08/09/2016, the action plan for learning languages (plan langues) of Forem, the Walloon office for vocational training and placement, offers financial assistance for learning Dutch, English and German. Learners can complete a year, or a semester, abroad in the academic year immediately following graduation from upper secondary school.

The Forem annually convenes the providers who practically organise the stay of the...

The Start Digital project was submitted by the Employment and Training department of the SPW (The Walloon Public Service) as part of the EaSI (Employment and Social Innovation) programme. The project brings together 13 education and training partners from Wallonia, Brussels and the Wallonia-Brussels Federation thus involving all the partners in education and training for adults in French-speaking Belgium (excluding higher education).

The project broadly targets jobseekers or learners over 25...

The action plan for the digital transition has three main pillars. Each one comprises three sub-pillars:

1. Capacity building and digital inclusion of people
   1. digital education,
   2. professional training and reskilling,
   3. digital inclusion and literacy,
2. Digital transformation of enterprises
   1. entrepreneurship and investment attraction,
   2. existing companies (with a focus on SMEs),
   3. scientific and technological knowledge transfer to the economy,
3. Digitalisation of the public sector
   1. digital...

The project started in September 2017 and was completed in October 2020. It was coordinated in Portugal by the Vocational Training Centre for the Commerce and Services Sectors (CECOA), in cooperation with partners from Germany, Italy, Spain, and the UK.

According to the intervention model report, the project promoted direct interaction among NEETs, employers and various local stakeholders (including local and regional authorities, SMEs, education and training providers, employment services,...

The targets presented in the roadmap and the measures needed to achieve it are based on the state of play in education and research as well as on key factors for changing the education and research environment. Finland's demographic trend is the most significant factor affecting the education system. The birth rate is dropping, age groups are smaller, and people live in growth centres in increasing numbers. The report (roadmap) outlines the guidelines for the future of the Finnish education...

In 2021, the National Agency for Education and PES have been tasked by the government to analyse information exchange between the spheres of education and the labour market, with the objective to ease the transition for the unemployed to municipal adult education. Their mission includes analysing cost-effective means of sharing information, what data are needed and how it can be used, proposals for legislative revisions and if needed, proposals for operationalised support at the local level...

In 2020, the Career check for young adults was introduced by the Austrian Economic Chambers and rolled out in five federal provinces. The career check is a combination of testing and counselling that supports young people in their career development. The development of the career check started in 2019 in cooperation with experts from the career centres of the regional Economic Chambers with the support of the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber.

The career check includes a test and an...

The government promoted a set of active employment measures, including vocational training, associated with the creation of self-employment and youth entrepreneurship, which stand out for their impact on this target group:

1. The Perception and business management network (Rede de Perceção e Gestão de Negócios, EJá) created in 2016, promotes entrepreneurship, creativity and innovation; and supports the NEETs (young people not in education, employment and training).
2. The Invest in young people...

A new Act on VET was adopted in June 2017 and entered into force in January 2018. The focus of the implementation of this latest reform is on the following elements:

1. a single Act on VET, i.e. VET for young people and adults within the same framework;
2. a single licence to provide education and to award qualifications;
3. flexible application and admission systems;
4. a clearer range of qualifications that better meets the needs of working life;
5. a single competence-based approach to completing...

As a part of the larger and continuous updating of VET qualifications, which is caused by the changes in working life, the Finnish National Agency for Education is preparing optional competence modules for sustainable development, financial literacy and economic understanding to be included in vocational upper secondary qualification requirements.

The strategic goals included in the Quality strategy are to be put into practice by using development measures. The development measures proposed for each VET actor have been set out for the next 3 years (2020-22). The actors are VET providers, the Ministry of Education and Culture, the Finnish National Agency for Education, working life committees and the Finnish Education Evaluation Centre. The monitoring and the review of the quality management strategy will take place at the end of the...

The Qualifica programme is based on:

1. cooperation and coordination among education, labour and higher education ministries in the development and implementation of policy tools and instruments;
2. combining adult education and professional training with recognition, validation and certification of competences (RVCC process);
3. promoting the coherence of the network of training courses;
4. promoting tailor-made training.

2016 legislation introduced Qualifica centres as a key tool of the programme,...

The Qualifica passport is a guidance instrument and personalised register of all qualifications, achieved learning outcomes and competences acquired or developed by an individual. It is a key instrument of the Qualifica programme, enabling the evaluation of everyone’s training, as well as allowing the identification of possible missing components and aiming to build a tailored training pathway. It is an instrument available in electronic format that allows adults to list their education...

The FET strategy 2020–24 was developed in consultation with the FET sector and other key stakeholders. Consultation was wide-ranging and included bilateral meetings, regional workshops and a public call for submissions. Strategy development also involved developing an understanding of the policy context, the evolving environment and the nature of FET provision in Ireland, and then benchmarking this against other international approaches to further and vocational education and training.

A...

This report contributes to the development of the evidence-based FET, in policy and practice, by providing the voice of the stakeholders, learners from some of the most vulnerable groups in society, educators, and employers.

In summary, the main challenges for reducing barriers to FET are: the lack of information and clarity around individual courses; the role of SOLAS and FET in general; addressing the negative socio-cultural attitudes towards FET; improved awareness of, and barriers to,...

The purpose of the call is permanent inclusion of young people in the labour market through innovative projects that enhance their general and specific competences for greater employability as well as active citizenship. It encourages innovative forms of youth work in tackling youth unemployment. The target group are unemployed young people 15 to 29 years of age.

Projects implementing activities were supported in one of the following:

1. work with young people within organisations in the youth...

The development, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the lifelong learning strategy 2021-27 is under the authority of the Ministry of Education, Sport and Youth, and is internally coordinated by the European and International Affairs, Lifelong Learning and Adult Education Office.

The monitoring of policies and actions included in the lifelong learning strategy are mandated to the national and the technical lifelong learning committees. Representatives from various stakeholders,...

The four pillars of action of the service are:

Personalised guidance from career counsellors and expert career guidance: each young person can arrange a personal appointment with a counsellor so that he/she can receive personalised counselling. Appointments are carried out at all youth information centres in all five districts in Cyprus;

Skills testing

This is an important tool that can lead young people to self-knowledge and guide them to the most appropriate choice of field of study and...

The Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs (BMAS) and the Federal Employment Agency (BA) joint initiative to provide initial vocational training for young adults Training will be something – late starters wanted (AusBILDUNG wird was – Spätstarter gesucht) started in 2013 and was initially scheduled for three years, before being further developed and continued as Future Starters (Zukunftsstarter) from August 2016 to 2020. The programme has been extended until 2025. Based on the...

The education strategy applies an integrated approach to the development of the education system to make better use of Estonia’s high-quality education for the benefit of people, society and the economy.

It continues to support the contemporary approaches to teaching and learning, considers rapid technological developments, strives to ensure the next generation of teachers and the renewal of teachers’ roles, and it focuses more on the skills policy, including a clearer division of the roles...