EU multilingualism strategy to focus on language learning

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Encouraging European citizens to learn two foreign languages should be the basis of the EU’s new multilingualism strategy due in September, concluded a ministerial conference last Friday (15 February).

The conference was set up to “identify areas where further action on languages is needed at both national and EU levels” and aimed to define common actions to be taken over the next three to five years. The Commission expects to use the results of the conference as “the basis for its Communication to the Parliament and the Council proposing a comprehensive language policy to be published during 2008.” 

Two aspects to upcoming EU strategy 

The new strategy will have a “management” aspect whereby the challenge would be to address the “sustainability” of EU language policy following the 2004 enlargement, Commissioner Orban’s spokesperson Pietro Petrucci told EURACTIV. 

Petrucci indicated that the bulk of the funding for the multilingualism portfolio went on translation and interpreting, with 15% available for the commissioner’s own policies. But this was “the cost of democracy,” as using and being understood in your own language was an EU right, he said. 

Moreover, the new strategy would have a political aspect whereby the Commission would attempt to bring cultural, national identity and business issues – as well as those related to the integration of migrants – together into a “comprehensive” policy, Petrucci said.

Personal adoptive language 

Meanwhile, Commissioner Orban supported a ‘personal adoptive language’ proposal contained in the report of the High Level Group on Multilingualism and reiterated that speaking two foreign languages in addition to the mother tongue should be the goal for EU citizens. 

A second, ‘personal adoptive’ foreign language could be a means of discovering the culture, history and literature of the country in which the language is spoken, he said. This view was echoed by Slovene Education Minister Milan Zver, who declared that the personal adoptive language idea was “the concept of the future”. 

The second foreign language would complement a first one most likely acquired for professional reasons. The conference also emphasised a lifelong learning aspect, identifying holidaying retired people and skilled workers as sections of the population who would benefit from an increased emphasis on language learning outside of formal educational settings. 

Business still to be convinced 

But the business world is yet to be fully convinced of the practicality of this. Viscount Etienne Davignon, chairman of the Business Forum, warned that it was important to “strike the right balance” in promoting multiple languages as it was “simply a fact” that a single language benefits EU business. 

Although business does not believe that all Europe’s problems would be solved by speaking one language, “English helps in a number of areas” and particularly “internally in businesses”, Davignon explained, and thus “it is one of the languages that we have to master”. 

Language and cultural identity

Ministers emphasised the central role played by the mother tongue in preserving the cultural identity of ethnic minorities and immigrants, and that of the host language in promoting societal integration. Commissioner Orban said that preserving the mother tongue “enhances the self-image” of young immigrants in the host country. 

Asked whether the proposal to learn a second adoptive language could be seen by citizens as a “dilution of national identity”, Orban conceded that languages were occasionally used as “weapons” because multilingualism is a “very sensitive” and “very political” subject. 

The ideas put forward at the conference would be included in the conclusions on multilingualism to be adopted by ministers during May’s Council meeting, said Zver. 

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Stressing the "independent" nature of the high-level group's report and recalling that education was a national competence whereby the subsidiarity principle must be respected, Commissioner Orban nevertheless said there were EU institutional issues surrounding multilingualism and highlighted the need "to engage member states in the process." 

Slovene Education Minister Milan Zver said that multilingualism was not only a means of improving "business excellence" but had an "intercultural role to play" in facilitating the "co-existence of people". 

Greek MEP Katerina Batzeli, chairwoman of Parliament's committee on culture and education, said that "multilingualism must be a tool and an instrument in the daily lives of all European citizens," bringing together "all cultural groups." Congratulating Mr. Orban and Slovene Presidency for taking the initiative on multilingualism, she said that Community programmes on the mobility of workers, Lifelong Learning and Youth in Action needed a greater focus on language learning. 

Business Forum Chairman Viscount Etienne Davignon said that the business world could only implement EU policies if it could be done "quickly" and explained "in practical terms." Calling for networks to be established to allow businesses to exchange experience, Davignon cautioned that "a policy without an example is a castle in the sky." 

Calling for "a new approach to education", Lebanese author Amin Maalouf, chairman of the Group of Intellectuals on Multilingualism, said that languages could not be ranked in order of importance as they were not just tools for communication. "Belonging to a particular language" could be a basis of cultural identity, he said. 

Asked why the press conference convened to discuss the multilingualism event could only take place in English, French, Romanian and Slovenian without any interpretation, a Commission spokesperson said that to do otherwise was "too complicated" within the time constraints of a press briefing. 

The conference gathered government ministers from a wide variety of EU member states and took place under the joint chairmanship of the European Commission and the Slovenian EU Presidency. It was the first time ministers have convened specifically to discuss multilingualism policy at EU level. 

A starting point for the debate was the final report of the independent High Level Group on Multilingualism – comprising a diverse range of figures including writers and philosophers – presented by Lebanese author Amin Maalouf. 

Language policy is a sensitive subject at EU level because it is strongly linked to national identity and infringes upon education policy, which is primarily a national competence. Moreover, multilingualism policy is currently worth €1.1bn or 1% of the EU budget. 

Multilingualism is seen as a means of promoting inter-religious dialogue and cultural understanding among EU citizens in the context of the European Year of Intercultural Dialogue (EYID) 2008. 

  • 21 Feb. 2008:  Council of Europe / UNESCO workshop on multilingualism in Paris.
  • 15 April 2008: Public hearing on multilingualism. 
  • 21-22 May 2008: Education, Youth and Culture Council to adopt conclusions on multilingualism. 
  • Sept. 2008: Commission to publish new multilingualism strategy. 

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