Smart, sustainable and inclusive growth is  the threefold objective of the ‘EU2020 strategy’ released by the European Commission on 3 March 2010.  The EC proposal sets out a 10-year roadmap for action to enable the EU to go out of the crisis and prepare EU economy for the next decade.

It proposes 5 key EU-level targets that will steer the process and be translated  into national targets namely:

1. Increasing the employment rate of the population aged 20-64 from the 69% to 75%

2. Raising the investment in R&D to 3% of the EU's GDP

3. Meeting the "20/20/20" climate/energy targets on greenhouse gas emission reduction and renewable energies

4. Reducing the share of early school leavers from the current 15% to under 10% and increasing the share of the population aged 30-34 having completed tertiary education from 31% to at least 40% in 2020 

5. Reducing the number of Europeans living below the national poverty line by 25%, lifting over 20 million people out of poverty from the current 80 million

The EC is also putting forward 7 EU "flagship initiatives"  to move the process forward.   They  address innovation, youth, the digital agenda, resource efficiency, industrial policy, skills and jobs and the fight against poverty.

The European Council will provide overall guidance for the strategy, while the Commission will monitor progress  and facilitate policy exchange. Partnership with civil society and other stakeholders is considered a key element to make the strategy succeed.

Member State representatives have already raised some concerns regarding the Commission’s proposal, notably the 5 key targets. At their meeting on 16 March 2010, EU’s finance ministers  indicated that more should be done on the R&D goal noting that the target should be more  “outcome-oriented”. They also questioned the very “principle and the correct design of a possible social inclusion target”.

EU heads of state and government are expected to reach a decision on the overall approach of the strategy and the EU targets at their summit on 25-26 March. The detailed parameters, including the integrated guidelines for 'Europe 2020' and country-specific targets, should be adopted at the EU summit on 17-18 June.

> For further details on the strategy, read EFC Briefing