Overview

With some 1.164 billion inhabitants the region is richly diverse – geographically, economically, politically, socially, ethnically, linguistically and culturally. Demographic structures are altering and the overall population is shrinking and ageing and diversity is increasing in the vast majority of the region, with all the ensuing economic, social, cultural and political implications.

Literacy and key competence levels continue to be a challenge in many parts of the region. In this context, it is worth noting that by 2020, 31.5 per cent of all jobs in the EU will need high qualifications and 50 per cent medium qualifications and that this is a consistent trend across the region. From a gender perspective, it is also worth noting that while women’s educational achievements are generally higher than men’s, in many parts of the region women’s employment rates are still lower and they continue to earn less than men.

From: Pan-European Statement on Adult Learning for Equity and Inclusion in the Context of Mobility and Competition, adopted at the CONFINTEA VI Regional Preparatory Conference for Europe, North America and Israel, Budapest, Hungary, 3 - 5 December 2008