Adult learning is growing in Chisinau, Moldova and Mykolaiv, Ukraine thanks to the efforts and recognition of authorities, community representatives and citizens of the power of learning for transforming lives and societies. This was the message of a recent joint event organised by the ETF and DVV International, Adult Learning progress and development in candidate and neighbouring countries. A governance perspective, held on the of 9th July 2025. Over 100 participants joined to learn from these inspiring case studies from these candidate countries for EU membership. They were presented by Daniela Munca-Aftenev from the Chisinau Municipality, and Victor Sikalenko from the Development Agency of the City of Mykolaiv respectively.
Siria Taurelli from ETF opened this succinct event, lasting just 90 minutes, together with Levan Kvatchadze from DVV International by drawing attention to its condensed focus on the governance aspect of adult learning which is a key element of the EU’s Union of Skills. The EU’s strategy prioritises skills development to ensure economic competitiveness and social cohesion for which a variety of actions at multiple policy levels are being supported through innovative governance arrangements.
“Good governance means that policies and systems are less fragmented and more coherent and the role of municipalities at the local level for responding swiftly to local needs and establishing partnerships amongst stakeholders for its achievement is vital,” said Taurelli.
Kvatchadze meanwhile introduced the case studies and their value for highlighting the importance of clearly defined goals in adult learning, partnerships, and clarity on the costs of engagement of national and local governments.
Munca-Aftenev began her presentation announcing the 2-year celebration of the Adult Learning Centre in Chisinau (CMIEA) describing how its formation as part of the national strategy for lifelong learning 2030 with an allocated budget filled a unique position in the city as the only organisation exclusively supporting adult learning in all its forms - formal, non-formal and informal.
“In these 2 years of service 10,000 requests have been received from citizens out of which 6,000 have been supported but we know that much more work needs to be done,” said Munca-Aftenev enthusiastically adding that “a number of obstacles must be overcome such as obtaining greater funding and attracting more trainers for short term professional courses to meet rapidly changing labour market needs.”
The learning opportunities available respond to multiple needs and types of learners bridging professional, leisure and civic life catering to citizens from 16 to 80 years of age with a personalised learning pass. CMIEA works in partnership with many other organisations who share the same values and goals with 28 strategic partnerships established with organisations from the public, private and civic spheres. It is now working with other municipalities across Moldova to create similar centres.
Victor Sikalenko from the Development Agency of Mykolaiv City in Ukraine contextualised his presentation by highlighting the difficult circumstances of the city which has seen it lose fifty per cent of its revenue in the last four years due to the ongoing war. Many gaps in the labour market exist due to the absence of citizens deployed in the military or who have moved abroad.
“Adult learning in these circumstances is more important than ever for instance by responding to the learning needs of women who are retraining for jobs in traditional male dominated sectors, the integration of returning veterans, or supporting those working in the police with war-time security concerns or health employees offering mental health support to the local population” said Sikalenko.
“Moreover, adult learning is also essential to boost the economy and focus is given to entrepreneurship for employment as well as enhancing the digital literacy of those of all ages,” he added.
To respond to these needs Mykolaiv city Adult Education Council has over fifty representatives from different areas of local government such as the police and the health care sector. Like the example from Chisinau it has also established many partnerships locally, nationally and internationally to enhance the quality and sustainability of its service.
In response to participants questions concerning how best to respond to the learning needs created by the fast changing needs of the labour market the presenters highlighted the value of local level adult learning organisations offering short term professional courses. The issue of quality assurance of such trainings was also considered from the perspective of certification by the training centres themselves and their recognition by the local labour market and further afield due to the strength of networks built through partnerships and governance.
The ETF’s Siria Taurelli concluded the event by referring to the ETF’s Quality Assurance Forum that has been active for over ten years working extensively across candidate and neighbouring countries to support the accreditation of adult learning providers, rather than accrediting each specific training programme.
“To increase participation and lower barriers training needs to be flexible and adapt rapidly,” said Taurelli.
Lastly, ETF expert Lisa Rustico briefly presented ETF’s mapping of legal and institutional arrangements supporting adult learning across countries including Moldova and Ukraine, as part of the Torino Process and drawing upon knowledge from the ETF’s GLAD network, to have a systematic overview of the state of play to guide EU programming and ETF policy support to countries. And Fabio Nascimbeni presented the ETF’s Community of Innovative Educators which also includes experts and decisions makers who come together to improve and innovate all facets of lifelong learning including adult learning.
The next events to take place as part of the ETF and DVV International partnership promoting adult learning will be in Chisinau in September 2025 on “Adult learning and education as a responsibility of local authorities” and an international conference in November 2025, Turin on “Adult lifelong learning for EU candidate, enlargement and neighbouring countries.” More details will follow soon on OpenSpace and the ETF website.
More information can be found here Online event "Adult learning progress and development in candidate and neighbouring countries. A governance perspective" | Open Space
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