European Commission Identifies Critical Obstacles to Bulgaria’s Growth and Competitiveness

Society | December 19, 2024, Thursday // 08:58|  views

@novinite.com

A new report from the European Commission highlights several critical challenges for Bulgaria, including adult digital learning, low nursery enrollment for children under three, and a high proportion of young people not in education, employment, or training (NEETs). These issues are part of the second package of the European Autumn Semester.

The report emphasizes that Bulgaria faces significant obstacles in education and skills development, which impact employment opportunities for certain groups and hinder the country's growth and competitiveness. Adult participation in learning is among the lowest in the EU, a concern identified as "critical" for the nation's progress. Furthermore, only 35.5% of Bulgarian adults possess basic digital skills, significantly below the EU average of 55.6% in 2023.

Childcare access also lags behind European standards, with only 17.4% of children under three enrolled in nursery schools compared to the EU average of 37.5%. This limited access may have long-term implications for adolescents' educational prospects. Although social inclusion and protection measures have shown some improvement, challenges persist. Notably, 33.9% of children in Bulgaria were at risk of poverty or social exclusion last year, a figure that remains high despite an 8.3% decrease from the previous year.

The labor market shows positive trends, with a historically high employment rate of 76.2%, slightly above the EU average of 75.3%. However, regional disparities are significant, ranging from 85.5% employment in the best-performing areas to 67.2% in the weakest regions. Meanwhile, the share of NEETs, although declining, stood at 13.8% in 2023, still higher than the EU average of 11.2%.

The report underscores the need for targeted strategies to address these challenges, aiming to enhance skills development, improve childcare access, and foster greater social inclusion across the country.

Source: European Commission


Tags: Bulgaria, Commission, challenges

Back  

» Related Articles:

Search

Search