A new generation of EU educational programmes, known as the Lifelong Learning Programme and the Youth in Action Programme, was launched by the EU Programmes Agency (EUPA) during a conference at the Hilton in St Julians yesterday.

In all, Malta has qualified for €3 million (Lm1.29 million) worth of funds under these programmes for next year.

Since inception, the Malta National Agency has been awarded €9 million (Lm3.86 million) for more than 6,000 projects and beneficiaries.

A study by Suzanne Gatt on the programmes running between 2000 and 2006 shows that in all the programmes the number of participants has gone up steadily.

The most popular countries for exchanges were the UK and Italy. While the Leonardo programme has helped introduce mobility of students in vocational education, Erasmus has become part of university life.

On their part, Comenius projects have served to give value to extra-curricular projects within primary and secondary schools.

Over 250 delegates attended the conference hailing from public and private sectors and NGOs.

The launch was addressed by Education Minister Louis Galea, the European Commission's Ruard Wallis de Vries, DG Education and Culture - Erasmus Unit and by Giorgio Guazzugli Marini, DG Education and Culture - Youth in Action unit.

During this half-day conference, the EUPA launched its website, www.eupa.gov.mt to provide information on programmes, on-line applications and partner searches.

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