Czechs look to private sector to fund education[fr][de] 

Mindful of the fact that much of the EU is in recession and "national resources will be stretched" by the ongoing hardship, Liska told MEPs on Monday (19 January) that "the presidency will need to seek new and diversified funding sources," particularly by looking to the private sector. 

Further cooperation on education will be achieved by promoting partnerships between educational institutions and business, the minister said. He stressed that his government wants to improve both the quality of and access to universities, particularly in the context of the Bologna process to establish a European Area of Higher Education by 2010 (see EurActiv LinksDossier). 

Welcoming the announcement, Greek Socialist MEP Katerina Batzeli, who chairs the European Parliament's culture committee, said the economic crisis had highlighted the need for "good education systems". 

Indeed, a Parliament report adopted last December stressed that lifelong learning and better promotion of new skills like media and ICT literacy will be required if Europe is to achieve its goal of becoming a world leader in education and training by 2010 (EurActiv 19/12/08). 

But Batzeli warned that more work is necessary to make the Bologna process a success. "There are disparities [regarding] Bologna's implementation across borders. Qualifications must be recognised throughout Europe," she said. 

Meanwhile, Czech Culture Minister Vaclav Jehlicka told MEPs that more funding should be made available for art education to help boost innovation and creativity. "Together with science and research, art can be an inspiration in times of crisis," he said. 

In March, the Czech EU Presidency will host a conference on "creativity, society, innovation and the economy" in Prague, an event described by Jehlicka as "one of the main events of the European Year of Creativity and Innovation". 

The European year was launched by EU Education Commissioner Jan Figel' earlier this month (EurActiv 09/01/09).