Basque Country (Presidency)

The Basque Country has held the Presidency of the EARLALL Network since 2014. As of 2023, the President of the Network is the Basque Govenment Minister of Education, Jokin Bildarratz.

The Basque Country and Education

Basque Country is the first EU Country 46,1% of youth (30-34) with higher studies (EU average 39,9%) and 38,8% graduates in science and technology. The Education Department is tasked with overseeing non-university and university education, together with research.

The Basque Country has a long tradition of changing and adapting Vocational Education and Training to the needs of businesses and people, and this has made the Basque Vocational Education and Training model an international benchmark The 6th Basque Vocational Education and Trainig Plan sets out to address a revamped vocational education and training model with the ability to adapt to a society immersed in an accelerated context of technological disruption, which poses new challenges and calls for a reinforcement not only of digital competences, but also critical and constructive thinking, creativity and humanist education.

Euskadi, as the Basque Country is known in Basque, is a small country but with a strong identity. With a history stretching back over 5,000 years, Euskadi has a distinctive culture and a language that is unique in the world. Euskadi is today a modern country that has managed to adapt to the times and is at the forefront of Europe in terms of quality of life and sustainable human development.

The Basque Country has a surface area of 7,000 km2 and a population of over 2 million. Its location means it is a connecting link on the European Atlantic Corridor.

The Basque Country has a Parliament and Government with a high degree of autonomy in policy areas including education, industry, culture, health, law enforcement and social services. Through its management of them, the Basque Country has achieved high human development indexes.

Euskadi is likewise made up of three provinces: Araba, Bizkaia and Gipuzkoa and Vitoria-Gasteiz, Bilbao and San Sebastián are our three capitals. The three are benchmarks in modernity and commitment to culture, the environment and quality of life.

Euskadi has its own tax system, which is unique in the world. The Economic Agreement embodies the bilateral tax and financial relationship between Euskadi and the Spanish State. The development and progress that Basque society has experience in recent decades can only be understood today taking the Instrument of the Economic Agreement into account.

Industry is the Basque economy’s driving force and key to create quality jobs. It represents 24.1% of GDP and places Euskadi at the head of the fourth industrial revolution. The GDP per capita is 119% and the productivity per employee tax is 127,9%.

Foreign Action is an essential tool for the promotion and defence of the Basque Country’s interests around the world with 7 Basque Government Delegations abroad and SPRI Commercial Network in 83 countries. The Basque Diaspora in the world is made up of a network of 191 Basque Centres.

 Our culture and our language, euskera, are key to understanding the past and to projecting towards a future that we build from creativity and collaboration. 5000 years of the Basque Language and it is one of the 35 languages on X (Twitter).

Contributing to the fight against poverty, the promotion of human development, gender equity and humanitarian action in conflicto and disasters and contexts are part of the Basque Development Cooperation.

We are a small country with a big identity, where everything is close and everything is diverse. We are a destination for cultural explores and landscape enthusiasts that has received more tan 3 million visitors in a country with 31 Michelin Stars. Basque Country is second in Tourist Quiality Certifications.

Sport is closely linked to Basque identity. Euskadi has numerous world-class athletes, as well as traditional sports practices with a large social implantation.

Further information: EN PDF 2 (basquecountry.eus)