| The European Union gave
the go-ahead to the Leonardo da Vinci II
programme, which will run from January 2000 to
December 2006. Leonardo
da Vinci II is open to participation from EU
countries, EEA/EFTA countries and the associated
countries preparing to join the EU, i.e. 31
European countries in all.
The new programme, with an
increased budget totalling 1.15 billion euro over
seven years, will focus on three objectives:
- To improve skills and
competences of people, especially young
people, in initial vocational training,
in particular through work-linked
training and apprenticeship;
- To improve the
quality of, and access to, continuing
vocational training and the life long
acquisition of skills and competences;
- To promote and
reinforce the contribution of vocational
training to the process of innovation,
with a view to improving competitiveness
and entrepreneurship.
These aims will be
implemented by five types of transnational
measures:
- Mobility: the
new programme should give a quarter of a
million people the chance to pursue
training or work experience abroad
- Pilot projects,
to develop innovation and quality
- Improving language
competences
- Transnational
networks, for the exchange of
experience and good practice
- The development of
reference material
There will be three calls
for proposals, in 2000, 2002 and 2004, each
setting out the programme's priorities for the
period ahead.
|