Submitted by the BA Education, Science and Culture Committee

Submitted by the BA Education, Science and Culture Committee RESOLUTION on development of education in alignment with labour market needs The Baltic Assembly, noting and acknowledging that well-developed education system is the main prerequisite for contributing to the competitiveness of a country and development of knowledge-based economies in the Baltic States; underlining that the development of education, science and research system must be among the priorities for the countries even during severe economic crisis; understanding that education system and labour market have strong reciprocal relations, calls on the parliaments and governments of the Baltic States and the Baltic Council of Ministers: with regard to cooperation and integration among the Baltic States – facilitate the formation of networks of universities and research institutions, and to promote their cooperation in developing joint study and research programmes; – coordinate the policies for research infrastructure development; – coordinate joint efforts for applying to the EU funds; – work together in research and development sector, to strengthen links among funding agencies and research councils, to exchange peers for scientific evaluation; – forge research and business links, to identify partnership opportunities for collaborative research and business projects, to identify areas for joint research and development projects; – develop joint student and doctoral student exchange programmes, by exchanging experts to evaluate study programmes and higher educational establishments and by developing exchange programmes for academicians and researchers; – support and promote joint initiatives in the European Research Area; – share the expertise and supporting reform agendas; with regard to vocational education – initiate reforms in order to make the system of vocational education responsive to labour market needs; with regard to business studies – include study programmes that are related to business competence in the curricula of professional education, and to develop approach to promote business thinking and motivation to take up business activities; with regard to innovation, science and research – attract knowledge and talent to the Baltic States in order to create a harmonised and target-oriented policy of intervention; – develop new joint activities in the system of education and research, thus facilitating the development of innovations in the Baltic States; – involve enterprises in the work of trans-national knowledge or excellence centres and facilitate participation of enterprises in international research and technology development projects and technology transfer; – identify and initiate joint activities to stimulate knowledge and talent attraction to the region by the use of Baltic Sea region higher education system quality; – establish a joint cluster, an international centre or a counselling centre for the purpose of attracting foreign students from Asia thus joining efforts in the area to develop education as the market for export; – promote training of high level specialists in other regional higher educational establishments, regularly attract guest professors, facilitate the mobility of researchers, professors and students; – minimize brain-drain, – find the right balance between higher education, non-university higher education and vocational training. Vilnius, 28 November 2009