BM88: Students in the Faroe Islands Must Have Access to Erasmus+ as Soon as Possible!

Erasmus+ is a cornerstone of educational collaboration and mobility in Europe but despite being part of the European North, the Faroe Islands remain the only country without access to Erasmus+ program, leaving a significant gap in opportunities for students, researchers, and educators.

Erasmus+ can provide students, researchers, and teachers in the Faroe Islands with greater opportunities to study, research, and teach abroad. It also has the potential to attract international students to the Faroe Islands, – benefitting both Faroese and international students. Erasmus+ can improve the academic quality, personal development, and well-being of Faroese students, thereby ensuring that they have a richer, more fulfilling educational experience. By fostering global partnerships, Erasmus+ promotes the exchange of knowledge, expertise, and innovative practices. Economically, this international collaboration can attract investments, open up new markets for research, and cultivate a highly skilled workforce capable of contributing to the country’s long-term growth and innovation.

However, several steps must be taken before Erasmus+ can become a reality in the Faroe Islands: The Faroe Islands need to join several frameworks that can facilitate this process, such as the European Higher Education Area (EHEA) for which the European Cultural Convention has to be joined. The Faroe Islands must also sign the Lisbon Recognition Convention and implement Bologna tools for the higher education system to become fully compatible with European standards. Since Denmark signed these agreements on behalf of the Danish Kingdom, which does not provide for independent membership for the Faroe Islands, the Faroe Islands must collaborate with Denmark to ensure Danish support in finding a way to enable this pursuit. Ensuring that the students’ voice is actively represented throughout this process is critical to making sure the resulting policies meet students’ needs.

Therefore, ESU, MFS and DSF propose:

• That the government (Ministry of Education and Research) must make it a priority to get the Faroe Islands into the EHEA.
• That the government signs and ratifies the Lisbon Recognition Convention and the European Cultural Convention and works closely with the Danish government to secure the necessary permissions and signatures.
• That the government establishes a national educational office to manage membership and related matters for Erasmus+ in the Faroe Islands.
• That the government continues to collaborate with MFS and the Student Council at the University of the Faroe Islands to ensure that the student perspective is consistently included in Erasmus+ applications.
• That the University of the Faroe Islands continues to advance its quality assurance efforts and prioritises the development of English-language programs to meet Erasmus+ standards.

Proposers: MFS, DSF

Seconders: EÜL, LÍS, USI, UDU, LSA, SAMOK, VSS-UNES-USU, SYL