Erasmus programme envisaged to be open by March
In a letter dated 8 December, the EU Education Commission said that, taking into account the progress made and commitment shown by Maltese Authorities, it is "confident that the programmes’ reopening could be envisaged by March 2011."
9 December 2010, 12:00am
Nestor Laiviera
Nestor Laiviera
2 min read
The letter is the latest development in a highly-charged saga that started with the suspension of the Erasmus study programme due to mishandling of the programme by the Education Ministry - something that Education Minister Dolores Cristina claimed ignorance of.
The issue even led to a vote of no confidence in the minister in June that was defeated.
In a statement, the Education Minister referred to a meeting held on 7 December between Minister Dolores Cristina and Androulla Vassilliou, Commissioner for Education, Culture, Multilingualism and Youth.
“This would allow Maltese individuals and organisations to apply in March 2011 for participation in the Youth in Action and Lifelong Learning (notably Erasmus) calls.”
During the meeting, the ministry said, the status of the suspension of the EU Education Programmes Youth in Action and Lifelong Learning was discussed. Mr Jan Truczcynski, Director General of DG Education and Culture was also present for the meeting, the ministry added.
“Commissioner Vassilliou acknowledged that following the visit by the Commission to Malta from 26 to 29 October, it was established that significant progress has been registered in the structures in place at the Ministry of Education, Employment and the Family and at the European Union Programmes Agency, as the National Authority and the National Agency of the EU Education Programmes respectively.”
“This progress is in line with the action plan that was agreed with the Commission following the suspension of the EU Programmes,” the ministry added. “This was confirmed in a letter from the Commission received on 8 December.”
According to the statement, a technical meeting between the Commission and the Maltese authorities has been set for 14 December to establish the remaining actions that are required for the Commission to lift the suspension.
“The Government is committed to carry out in the shortest time possible these actions with a view for the Commission to carry out a visit to Malta at the end of January to confirm that the remaining actions have been implemented and therefore suspension can be lifted,” the ministry affirmed.
