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Europe 2020
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- Europe 2020 targets
Europe 2020 targets
To measure progress in meeting the Europe 2020 goals, 5 headline targets have been agreed for the whole EU.
This limited set of EU-level targets is translated into national targets 
[307 KB] 
in each EU country, reflecting different situations
and circumstances.
The 5 targets for the EU in 2020
- 1. Employment
- 75% of the 20-64 year-olds to be employed
- 2. R&D / innovation
- 3% of the EU's GDP (public and private combined) to be invested in R&D/innovation
- 3. Climate change / energy
- greenhouse gas emissions 20% (or even 30%, if the conditions are right) lower than 1990
- 20% of energy from renewables
- 20% increase in energy efficiency
- 4. Education
- Reducing school drop-out rates below 10%
- at least 40% of 30-34–year-olds completing third level education
- 5. Poverty / social exclusion
- at least 20 million fewer people in or at risk of poverty and social exclusion
Features of the targets
- They give an overall view of where the EU should be on key parameters by 2020.
- They are translated into national targets [307 KB] so that each Member State can check its own progress towards these goals.
- They do not imply burden-sharing – they are common goals, to be pursued through a mix of national and EU action.
- They are interrelated and mutually reinforcing:
- educational improvements help employability and reduce poverty
- more R&D/innovation in the economy, combined with more efficient resources, makes us more competitive and creates jobs
- investing in cleaner technologies combats climate change while creating new business/job opportunities.
