The proportion of adults of working age (aged 15 - 64) taking part in either formal or non-formal education and training programmes has been increasing over the past decade, from 35.2 percent in 2007 to 45.1 percent in 2016, but Romania is lagging behind, with just 7 percent in 2016, according to data released by Eurostat on Monday.
In 2016, the highest participation rates across the European Union member states were recorded in the Netherlands (64.1 percent) and Sweden (63.8 percent). In Austria, Hungary, Finland, the United Kingdom, Germany, France and Denmark between 50 percent and 60 percent of working-age adults participated in some form of education and training programmes.
The lowest rates of participation in education or training programmes were recorded in Bulgaria (24.6 percent), Greece (16.7 percent) and Romania (7 percent).
Adult participation is mostly in non-formal types of training, such as job-related training courses - which account for the majority of non-formal learning activities - as well as classes on general culture or life skills that are organised outside the formal education system.
In 2016, 42.6 percent of adults took part in non-formal training programmes in 2016, compared with 5.8 percent of adults in formal training. In Romania, 5.6 percent of adults took part in non-formal training programmes in 2016, compared with 1.7 percent of adults who attended formal training programmes.