European Perspective

Education and training have a prominent place in the Europe 2020 Strategy for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth. A headline target has been set for education which specifies twin goals on early school leaving and higher education attainment, while under the European semester of economic governance, the key messages of the 2016 Annual Growth Survey (AGS) as well as the Country-specific Recommendations have strong links with education and training. Moreover, the ‘Strategic framework for cooperation in education and training until 2020’ (ET 2020) and the ‘Rethinking education’ strategy focus attention on the major challenges facing European education systems, and highlight the areas that need to be improved.

Iceland is not an active participant in the Europe 2020 strategy. However, many of the key aspects of the framework fall under the EEA agreement, so Iceland, much like other EEA member states, keeps a close eye on developments of the strategy.