A Few Words

On the threshold of the 21st century the rapid development of knowledge, the globalization of economy, the transformation of the production process with the utilization of information and telecommunication technologies, create a new circumstances and opportunities for progress and the improvement of the quality of life.

More than ever before the role of human capital has emerged to be a determining factor for the survival and progress of societies. The new environment demands that the educational system trains (young) people capable of meeting new social challenges so that they can integrate unhindered into the active life of the labour market by broadening their knowledge through the extensive use and exploitation of Lifelong Learning. The very nature of today’s social needs lays emphasis on knowledge, adaptability and inventiveness. It also requires enhanced skills: communication, cooperation, quick reaction to challenges, taking initiative, managing choice etc. The educational system, being a basic structural element responsible for the formation of future human resources must be gradually transformed in order to answer the new needs and challenges.

Within the framework of the Third CSF, the Minsitry of National Education and Religious Affairs’ Operational Program for Education and Initial Vocational Training includes an integrated series of measures and actions with the enhancement of the educational system and the services it offers as the ultimate goal so that it meets real social needs more efficiently by opening channels of communication and interconnections with the labour market.

GOALS AND STRATEGY FOR THE PERIOD 2000 - 2006

The goals and the overall planning of the Operational Program for Education and Initial Vocational Training (O.P. "Education" II) are an integral part of the national education strategy. The Operational Program is conducted parallel to other important actions of institutional nature in the field of human resource development. The priorities and the measures being developed, are connected to the general policy on development of human resources, the national action plan for employment, educational policy, and the general direction adopted by the European Union. They are aimed at enhancing both the education provided and the potential for youth to be integrated into the social and productive fibre, promoting equal opportunities, combating social exclusion, raising awareness on environmental issues, and promoting gender equality.

The policies developed with O.P. "Education" II resources are not segmented. They are based on an integrated plan that involves a sequence of actions related to the integrated educational policy. In the new program period (2000-2006) the Ministry of National Education and Religious Affairs, with the experience acquired during the O.P. "Education" I, places particular emphasis on:

the quality of the planned interventions
continuous evaluation of actions
the quality of results
their coupling with labour market needs and prospects