New study abroad programme makes languages an EU priority

By Anna Codrea-Rado. A €15b initiative from the European Union to encourage study and training abroad will address unemployment and social mobility, says EU commissioner. Language learning is an EU priority, Androulla Vassiliou, EU commissioner for education, culture and multilingualism, has said. Launching the revamped Erasmus+ programme, Vassiliou said languages are essential for addressing unemployment and social mobility within the European Union.
"Languages are one of our six priority topics under Erasmus+," Vassiliou said. "Whether it is for mobility for language learning, partnerships between institutions for language teaching, or policy support, it is one of our priorities."
The Erasmus+ programme will provide grants for more than four million people across the EU to study or train abroad. It comes into force in January 2014 and aims to address the language skills deficit holding back young people from international jobs. More...