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home > In the EU > EU and national policies > More efforts needed to achieve Lisbon strategy targets says Commission More efforts needed to achieve Lisbon strategy targets says Commission The European Commission’s annual report on the progress of the Union towards the Lisbon goals warns of insufficient improvements in at least four of the five benchmarks used to measure the progress of the EU’s education systems. The Commission staff working paper published on 16 May 2006 analyses progress achieved since 2000. “It is clear that additional efforts are urgently needed to achieve the five benchmarks [to assess progress in education and training systems] by 2010,” said Commission President Ján Figel’, European Commissioner for Education, Training and Multilingualism on release of the report. The Lisbon strategy states that the EU should by 2010 become the most dynamic knowledge-based economy in the world, and the target date is fast-approaching. To measure achievements towards this goal, a set of five benchmarks were adopted at the European Council during the Greek presidency in May 2003.  The five European benchmarks for 2010 are: • Early school leavers • Mathematics, science and technology (MST) • Completion of upper secondary education • Basic skills • Lifelong learning The early school leavers’ (18-24 years-old) benchmark set the target of having by 2010, an EU average rate of no more than 10 per cent of early school leavers. The 2006 report shows that in 2005, 6m young people left education prematurely. This is 2m too many above the target. Best performing EU countries as regards the share of early school leavers are: Poland (5.5%), Slovakia (5.8%) and the Czech Republic (6.4%). The mathematics, science and technology (MST) is the only benchmark which is met. It stressed that the number of MST graduate should increase by 15 per cent in 2010. The progress required was achieved in 2000-2003. The best-performing countries in terms of MST graduates per 1 000 of the population aged 20-29 are: Ireland (24.2), France (22.2), and the UK (21.0), while in terms of female graduates Estonia (42.5%), Cyprus (42.0%) and Portugal (41.5%) have the highest proportion. On completion of upper secondary education, the target is to achieve an 85 per cent completion rate. The 2006 report shows that an additional 2m young people would need to complete upper secondary education. The best-performing EU countries are: Slovakia (91.5%), Slovenia (90.6%) and the Czech Republic (90.3%). The basic skills benchmark sets out that ‘all individuals need a core package of knowledge, skills and attitudes for employment, inclusion, subsequent learning as well as personal fulfilment and development’. A core skill is reading literacy; the target sets that by 2010, the percentage of low-achieving 15-year-olds in reading literacy in the European Union should have decreased by at least 20 per cent. The 2006 report found that out of the 5m 15-year-old pupils in the EU about one million are presently poor readers. To achieve the Lisbon target, 200,000 pupils would have to improve their standard of reading The best-performing EU countries are: Finland (5.7%), Ireland (11%) and the Netherlands (11.5%). ‘Lifelong learning is the process by which individuals update and complement their knowledge, competencies and skills throughout life to maximise their personal development and to maintain and improve their position in the labour market,’ said the 2003 presidency conclusions. If the EU wishes to reach the 12.5 per cent rate target of adults engaging in lifelong learning, an additional 4m adults needs to engage in such a process. The best-performing EU countries in this regard are: Sweden (34.7%), United Kingdom (29.1%) and Denmark (27.6%). For further information see: Full report available at: Council Conclusions May 2003 (OJ C 134, 7.6.2003):
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