Ukraine, Mînzatu: “Education is key to reconstruction and the path to EU accession”

Brussels – “The European Union will continue to support Ukraine and its education sector” because “education is a key pillar of Ukraine’s recovery, reconstruction, and path towards EU accession,” said the European Commission’s Executive Vice-President for Social Rights, Skills, Quality Jobs and Learning, Roxana Mînzatu, at a press briefing following the high-level dialogue with the Ukrainian Minister of Education and Science, Oksen Lisovyi. This was a historic meeting for Mînzatu, as today’s (12 May) was the first between the European Union and Ukraine on education.

Lisovyi and Mînzatu reiterated the 2023 commitment to strengthen cooperation in education and skills. “Since 2022, the European Union has mobilised over €1.1 billion to support education in Ukraine, combining emergency assistance, reform support and long-term investments,” said the Romanian Vice-President. This includes over €210 million under Erasmus+, which has supported more than 52,000 Ukrainian participants in learning mobility, financed over 370 cooperation projects, and helped deliver 1.5 million schoolbooks for Ukrainian children,” Mînzatu explained. The aim now is to establish a national Erasmus agency in Ukraine, “a concrete step towards full integration into the European education system.” 

The EU will continue to work towards “the right to a future,” the Commissioner stated. “Since 2022, the EU has welcomed around 720,000 Ukrainian children into its schools, and no one should lose the chance to return to Ukraine,” she emphasised. Mînzatu concluded by announcing that the dialogue will continue, with the second high-level meeting scheduled for 2027.