Mag. Elisabeth Augustin
Head of Department International Cooperation Offices and Foreign Language Teaching
EU Strategy for the Danube Region (EUSDR)
Priority Area 9 – "Investing in People and Skills"
The implementation of the EU Strategy for the Danube Region (EUSDR) started in 2011 after its official endorsement by the European Council. 14 countries participate in the EUSDR: Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, Germany (Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria), Hungary, Montenegro, the Republic of Moldova, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia and Ukraine (Western regions).
The strategy is implemented along four thematic pillars (connectivity, environment, prosperity, strength), which are divided into 12 priority areas. The aim of Priority Area 9 “Investing in People and Skills” is to promote the sustainable and inclusive development of the Danube Region through education, training, further education and investments in the human capital of the region.
Priority Area 9 is coordinated by the Austrian Federal Ministry of Education (BMB), together with the Austrian Federal Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs, Health, Care and Consumer Protection (BMASGPK), in cooperation with the Republic of Moldova (Ministry of Education and Research, Ministry of Labour and Social Protection) and Ukraine (Ministry of Education and Science). To support the BMB in its coordination role in the field of education, a project coordination post was in place at the OeAD until the end of 2025.
Within the framework of Priority Area 9, OeAD implemented initiatives to foster networking and cooperation among key actors from the Danube Region countries. In addition to organising Steering Group meetings, stakeholder conferences and other events, support was also provided for the further development and initiation of cross-border collaborations and projects.
These activities were most recently funded by the European Union's Interreg Danube Region Programme under the project PA9 „People and Skills“ (DRP0100001, DRP-PAC3-PA9).
Highlights of recent years included stakeholder conferences on resilient education and the green and digital transitions, as well as Erasmus+/eTwinning seminars promoting cooperation between schools in the Danube Region. The successful establishment of a Danube Region platform on vocational excellence, in cooperation with the EU agency European Training Foundation (ETF), raised regional visibility of the important role of Centres of Vocational Excellence, which are now also supported by the Danube Region Programme. In addition, a Danube Region Monitor was set up to provide robust data in the fields of education and the labour market.
Countries in the Danube Region continue to be supported by OeAD in the implementation of education reforms as part of its Programme for Educational Cooperation with Eastern and South-Eastern Europe.
