Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 19 October 2023
108. Deputy Cathal Crowe asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science if he will provide an update on the Programme for Government commitment to further promote a culture of lifelong learning within the workforce, focusing on increasing the lifelong learning rate from the current rate of 9% to 18% by 2025; what the current rate is in 2023; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45533/23]
View answerLifelong Learning could not be more important as we leverage continued alterations in how we live and work in the face of megatrends such as digitisation and the green transition for a sustainable economy. This focus is underpinned by the OECD Report on Ireland's Skills Strategy published on 9 May this year.
That report highlighted the need for increased focus on short, flexible and blended skilling options for individuals entering or transitioning in the workforce; and progressing ease of navigability through options for skilling and ensuring individualised, continuous learning journeys are encouraged and enabled for all. My department is working to respond to these findings.
Under the European Pillar of Social Rights Action Plan, we have defined our ambition of annual participation rate in Lifelong Learning of 64.2% of all adults by 2030. Ireland’s 2017 rate was 53.9%.
Our recording of lifelong learning participation on an annual basis differs slightly to EU metrics, which are based on participation percentage by year, with an overall EU target of 60%. Ireland’s lifelong learning participation rates provide detail of the number of adults learners participating in education over the preceding four weeks.
Latest figures by the SLMRU (SOLAS Skills and Labour Market Research Unit) show that in Q4 of 2022, 11.8% of adults in Ireland were engaged in lifelong learning education, accounting for a substantial 440,272 of our population.
