LEONARDO DA VINCI funds 793 new projects in 1996
The LEONARDO DA VINCI action programme for the implementation of a European Community vocational training policy, launched in 1995, has continued, in its second year, to provide valuable support and stimulation to the European vocational training sector. In 1996, the European Commission received 3,100 applications for funding for transnational vocational training projects, of which a total of 793 have been accepted for funding. The projects selected involve more than 10,000 partners. The total co-funding granted by the Community amounts to ECU 112.2 million, of which ECU 84 million for pilot projects, ECU 22 million for placement and exchange programmes and ECU 6.2 million for surveys and analyses. Examples of projects receiving Community funding range from the development of a European banking skills card, intended to boost the mobility of banking personnel, to the development of a training course for unskilled women. Commenting on the results of the 1996 call for proposals, Mrs. Edith Cresson, Commissioner responsible for research, education, training and youth, noted that these highlight the importance that attached, by the 18 participating countries, to the acquisition of skills and the development of occupational profiles linked to job integration, maintenance and mobility and to the emergence of new jobs.