Erasmus

Key points

The EESC:

• welcomes the next Erasmus programme's objective to equip individuals with the knowledge, skills and competences needed to face social and economic challenges and to focus primarily on young European citizens;
• suggests that the name "Erasmus+" be retained, as it symbolises the fact that all the programmes are contained under one umbrella;
• also welcomes the proposal to double the programme's budget, but calls for it to be tripled, which would show a deeper commitment to the educational, professional and personal development of people in education, training, youth and sport, in order to ensure real inclusiveness and access for all. A higher budget should be combined with greater flexibility and responsibility at national level;
• highlights the fact that the actions under the "youth" chapter were previously the most successful in reaching out to those with fewer opportunities and that this should be reflected in the allocation of funding;
• recommends giving priority in the new programme’s Youth chapter to "volunteer-led" activities and organisations instead of using terminology of "big" and "small". Grants to large-scale European youth events should also be considered.