4 facts on skills and social inclusion

Providing equal access to opportunities, resources, education, training and work is essential to create cohesive societies whose citizens are included, active and engaged.

This year, Eurofound and the ETF conducted a far-reaching survey of the EU’s 27 member states and 10 neighbouring countries ¹ to assess the challenges and concerns of the cost of living, well-being and work in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic. Here below are some of the key findings focused on inclusion:

41% of respondents aged 18-29 from the EU’s neighbouring countries feel excluded from society, compared to 28% of their peers from the EU-27.
73% of respondents from the EU’s neighbouring countries reported lacking sufficient access to education and training, as compared to 36% of respondents in the EU-27.
19% of respondents from the EU’s neighbouring countries consider their internet connectivity to be extremely problematic, in contrast to 7% of respondents from the EU-27.
People aged 30-44 in the EU’s neighbouring countries expressed lower levels of life satisfaction (4.2 mean score out of 10) than their EU-27 peers (5.8 mean score out of 10) yet paradoxically remained more optimist about their own future and the future of their country.

¹ ^{Albania, Georgia, Jordan, Kosovo*, Lebanon, Moldova, Morocco, North Macedonia, Palestine** and Tunisia}

^{* This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244/1999 and the ICJ Opinion on the Kosovo declaration of independence.}

^{** This designation shall not be construed as recognition of a State of Palestine and is without prejudice to the individual position of the Member States on this issue.}

Source: Eurofound-ETF (2022), Living, working and COVID-19 in the European Union and 10 EU neighbouring countries , Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg.