Archive:Enlargement countries - education statistics

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Data from Month Year, most recent data: Further Eurostat information, Main tables and Database.

Table: Population as of 1st January (1 000) Source: Eurostat (demo_pjan)

Eurostat’s role in the enlargement policy is to check the compliance of candidate countries with the acquis in statistics. In addition, Eurostat collects statistical information on the demographic conditions and education in candidates and potential candidate countries. These data allow a better understanding of the situation in these countries and allow comparison with the European Union. These data are also used when the European Commission prepares the adoption of its annual strategy document detailing its policy on EU enlargement and the progress reports on the political and economic developments in candidate/potential candidate countries.

Main statistical findings

Table: Population by age class, 2009 (% of total population) (1) Source: Eurostat

Table: Crude birth and death rates (per 1 000 inhabitants) Source: Eurostat (demo_gind)

Table: Total fertility rate (mean number of children per women)Source: Eurostat (demo_find)

Table:Upper secondary education,(%)Source: Eurostat (cpc_psilc)

Table:Number of pupils/students by ISCED level of education, 2009 (1 000) Source: Eurostat (lfsi_edu_a)

Table:(continued): Number of pupils/students by ISCED level of education, 2009 (1 000) Source: Eurostat (cpc_psilc)

Table:(continued): Number of students in tertiery education (ISCED 5 and ISCED 6) Source: Eurostat (lfsi_edu_a)

Enlargement of the European Union means that more people joins the European “community of values based on peace and freedom, democracy and the rule of law, as well as tolerance and solidarity”. In 2009, almost 500 million people lived in the European Union and around 96 million people lived in the enlargement countries. The combined population of the enlargement countries represented nearly a fifth of the total EU-27 population.

Among enlargement countries, Turkey accounted for by far the greatest numbers among them, with almost 72 million people, whereas Iceland and Montenegro recorded the lowest numbers, with populations of 319 thousand and 630 thousand respectively in 2009. The proportion of the different age groups to the total population varied widely among the respective countries. In the EU-27 and all of the enlargement countries (for which data are available) alike the working age population (population aged 15-64) accounted for just over two thirds of the total population. Between 2000 and 2009, the working age population increased in the EU-27 and nearly all enlargement countries. However, Croatia and Serbia showed a general decrease in the size of the working age population.

In the EU-27, Croatia and Serbia, for instance, 15% of the population was aged below 15, compared to around 25% in Albania and Turkey. The majority of the enlargement countries, along with the EU where the percentage change was the lowest (6%), saw a decrease in the population below the age of 15. Only in Iceland did the population under 15 years of age increase by just over 2%. Meanwhile, the senior population (64 years of age and more) numbers soared in all territories except for Serbia, where the figures fell by almost 5%.

Crude birth rates higher then crude death rates in most enlargement countries

In more than half of the enlargement countries, the crude birth rate is higher than the one in the EU-27 which amounts to 10.7 births per 1 000 inhabitants. The highest crude birth rate was recorded in Turkey, Iceland and Kosovo where it reached 17 and 16 birth per 1 000 inhabitants respectively in 2009. Croatia and Serbia were the only enlargement countries where the crude death rate was higher than the one of the EU-27. The crude rate of natural increase can be calculated by subtracting the crude death rate from the crude birth rate, with a positive result showing that the size of the population is growing, provided that the effects of migration are discounted. Over recent years, Croatia and Serbia were the only countries to experience a negative rate of natural increase. This indicates that, regardless of the impact of migration, population declined in these two countries. In 2009, the crude death rate exceeded the crude birth rate by 4.6 per thousand inhabitants in Serbia and 1.7 in Croatia. In contrast, Turkey and Kosovo combine a high crude birth rate and a relatively low crude death rate. As a result, they recorded the largest crude rate of natural increase: it amounted to 12.5 per thousand inhabitants in Kosovo and 10.8 in Turkey in 2009.

Fertility rates of over 2 children per woman in Iceland and Turkey

Only two of the enlargement countries, Iceland and Turkey, recorded Fertility rate of over 2 children per woman (according to the latest data available). In Turkey the rate fell steadily between 2000 and 2009, while in Iceland it rose to 2.15 children per women in 2009, reaching the highest rate in any of the enlargement countries in 2009. The EU-27 and Croatia also saw a boost in the fertility rate over recent years. In contrast, Albania experienced a particularly sharp fall in the fertility rate, from 2.0 in 2000 to 1.33 in 2007, although it increased slightly to 1.4 in 2009.

Education

Education and training policies are central to the Europe 2020 strategy, the objective of which is to turn the EU into a smart, sustainable and inclusive economy. One of the headline targets of Europe 2020 is to reduce the share of early school leavers to below 10% of the population aged 18-24. Data on educational attainment show that, in 2009, close to four fifths (78.6 %) of the EU-27’s population aged 20 to 24 had completed at least an upper secondary level of education. In Croatia and Serbia, this share amounted respectively to 95 % and 89 % of the population which is nearly 17 and 10 percentage points higher than the EU-27. On the opposite, in Iceland and Turkey, half or a little more than 53 % of the population aged 20 to 24 had completed at least an upper secondary level of education.

Between 2000 and 2009, the proportion of 18-24 year olds who have not completed upper secondary education and did not participate in any education or training activities fell in the EU-27 and in the enlargement countries for which data are available, i.e. Croatia, Iceland and Turkey. In 2009, the share of early leavers from education and training was a little more than 14 % of young population. Croatia and Serbia recorded by far the lowest levels in Europe, below 10%, of early school leavers which is below the EU2020 target. In contrast, in both Albania and Turkey the proportion of young people who had not completed upper secondary school education was 39% and almost 45% respectively (according to the latest data available). Regarding gender-specific differences, a significant gap between the two gender groups was recorded both in Iceland and Turkey. In 2009, around 25% of men aged 18-24 in Iceland did not complete upper secondary education and was not involved in any education or training during the reference period, compared with almost 18% of their female counterparts. This difference was reversed in Turkey where around 38% of young men were early school leavers, compared with around 50% of their female counterparts.

Comparing educational attainment of the population across countries provide a first insight of the In 2009, the EU-27 counted 107 million pupils and students (from pre-primary to tertiary education). In the enlargement countries, around 24 millions pupils and students were enrolled in 2009. Of course, the number of pupils depends of various factors among with the size and structure of the population, the structure of the education system (e.g. the length of compulsory schooling) and the opportunities on the labour market.

One of the objectives of the Europe 2020 strategy is to increase the participation in tertiary education. Between 2000 and 2009, the number of students in tertiary education increased in the EU-27 and in all enlargement countries. All of the enlargement countries saw higher growth rates than the EU-27, although it should be noted that they were based on lower absolute values. The percentage of the population aged 20-29 graduating in science and technology increased in the EU-27 as well as in all the enlargement countries over recent years. Across the EU-27 and among the enlargement countries, a higher percentage of men than women completed their tertiary education in science.

Data sources and availability

Data for a core set of indicators is collected each year through questionnaires sent out by Eurostat to the partner countries. A network of contacts in each country has been established for updating the questionnaires. Eurostat distributes the electronic questionnaires to a single contact point in each partner country. This contact point is in charge of the onward distribution of the questionnaires to the various thematic co-ordinators in each country's statistical system (generally within the national Statistical Offices) and of their collection afterwards. When completed, the validated and updated questionnaires are sent back to Eurostat. The only statistical theme extracted from Eurostat’s free dissemination database is demography. Data for Iceland were also extracted from Eurostat’s free dissemination database