During its Plenary Session on 28 and 29 May 2008, the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) will adopt an exploratory opinion on the mobility of young people in Europe. In this opinion, prepared at the request of the future French presidency, the EESC calls for increase the number of people benefiting from mobility programmes and to enhance their quality.
In its draft opinion on “Better promoting the mobility of young people in Europe: practicalities and timetable”, the Committee welcomes the interest and support shown by the future French presidency of the Council towards the mobility of young Europeans.
Over the years, numerous documents have pointed out the obstacles to mobility, and effective solutions have been proposed, described and sometimes implemented, making it possible to remove the impediments to the movement and residency of EU citizens outside their countries of origin. Prepared by rapporteur Mr RODRÃGUEZ GARCÃA-CARO (Group I, Employers, Spain), the opinion stresses that what is needed is not so much to continue to identify obstacles to mobility in the European Union but, rather, to implement the right measures in a reasonably short time so that all that has already been said about mobility can be legitimised.
The EESC considers that the situation of young people should be methodically defined, dividing them into different target groups with comparable circumstances and subject to similar issues. The EESC recommendations also call for removing the legal and administrative obstacles to mobility, reducing linguistic and cultural obstacles by encouraging the learning of at least two languages, promoting the various arrangements for financial support, by facilitating the portability of scholarships as well as for promoting a European qualification area.
However the EESC believes that promoting knowledge of the multiple resources at our disposal is another way to remove obstacles to mobility. By involving all stakeholders in making mobility a reality for young people and taking a more proactive approach to the different EU policies in the field, it could be possible to bring about a fundamental change to the status quo.
