Council Resolution of 21 November 2008 on a European strategy for multilingualism
Date: 2008-11-21
Institutions: Council of the European Union
Subjects: European identity, competitiveness, cultural transmission, economic and social cohesion, free movement of workers, multilingualism

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Official Journal of the European Union

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I

(Resolutions, recommendations and opinions)

RESOLUTIONS

COUNCIL

COUNCIL RESOLUTION

of 21 November 2008

on a European strategy for multilingualism

(2008/C 320/01)

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

REFERRING TO:

1. the Council Resolution of 14 February 2002 on the promo-
tion of linguistic diversity and language learning (1), which
stressed that the knowledge of languages is one of the basis
skills each citizen needs in order to take part effectively in
the European knowledge society and therefore facilitates both
integration into society and social cohesion;

2. the

conclusions of

the European Council meeting in
Barcelona on 15 and 16 March 2002, which called for
further action to improve the mastery of basic skills, in par-
ticular by teaching two foreign languages to all from a very
early age (2);

learning and translation in the acquisition of intercultural
competences;

7. the Council conclusions of 22 May 2008 on multilingualism,
which, inter alia, invite the Commission to draw up proposals
by the end of 2008 for a comprehensive policy framework
on multilingualism.

WELCOMING:

— the Commission communication of 18 September 2008
for Europe and a shared

entitled ‘Multilingualism: an asset
commitment’ (6).

TAKING NOTE OF:

3. Decision No 1983/2006/EC of the European Parliament and
the Council of 30 December 2006 concerning the

of
European Year of Intercultural Dialogue (2008) (3);

— the Commission Green Paper of 3 July 2008 entitled ‘Migra-
tion and Mobility: Challenges and opportunities for EU education
systems’ (7),

4. the Council conclusions of 19 May 2006 on the European
Indicator of Language Competence (4), which reaffirmed that
foreign language skills, as well as helping to foster mutual
understanding between peoples, are a prerequisite for a
mobile workforce and contribute to the competitiveness of
the European Union economy;

5. the Council conclusions of 22 May 2008 on the Work Plan
for Culture 2008-2010 (5), which point up the cultural
dimension of multilingualism and in particular its role in
access to culture and its contribution to creativity;

6. the Council conclusions of 22 May 2008 on Intercultural
language

Competences, which acknowledge the role of

(1) OJ C 50, 23.2.2002.
(2) SN 100/02, point 44, p. 19.
(3) OJ L 412, 30.12.2006, p. 44.
(4) OJ C 172, 25.7.2006, p. 1.
(5) OJ C 143, 10.6.2008.

and in the light of the proceedings of the convention on multi-
lingualism held in Paris on 26 September 2008.

CONSIDERS THAT:

— linguistic and cultural diversity is part and parcel of the
European identity; it is at once a shared heritage, a wealth, a
challenge and an asset for Europe,

— multilingualism is a major cross-cutting theme encom-
passing the social, cultural, economic and therefore educa-
tional spheres,

— the promotion of

less widely used European languages

represents an important contribution to multilingualism,

(6) Doc. 13253/08 + ADD 1 + ADD 2 + ADD 3.
(7) Doc. 11631/08 + ADD 1 (COM(2008) 423 final).

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— significant efforts should still be made to promote language
learning and to value the cultural aspects of linguistic diver-
sity at all
levels of education and training, while also
improving information on the variety of European languages
and their dissemination across the world,

— multilingualism is

significance

also of particular

in
promoting cultural diversity, inter alia in the field of media
and content online, and intercultural dialogue within Europe
and with the other regions of the world; translation, on
account of the links it establishes between languages and
cultures and the broad access it provides to works and ideas,
plays a special role in this process,

— linguistic diversity within Europe constitutes an added value
for the development of economic and cultural relations
between the European Union and the rest of the world,

— multilingualism contributes

to developing creativity by
allowing access to other ways of thinking, interpreting the
world and expressing the imagination.

INVITES THE MEMBER STATES AND THE COMMISSION, WITHIN
THEIR RESPECTIVE SPHERES OF COMPETENCE AND IN FULL
ACCORDANCE WITH THE PRINCIPLE OF SUBSIDIARITY, TO:

1. Promote multilingualism with a view to strengthening
intercultural dialogue and European

social cohesion,
construction

(a) increase awareness of the benefits of language diversity
and language learning among members of the public and
in particular young people undergoing initial training in
both general and vocational education;

especially young people,

(b) provide teaching of the language of the host country for
an essential
as
integration and employability,
their countries of

migrants,
element
while respecting the languages of
origin.

for successful

languages which are less widely used, so as to enable
pupils to choose on the basis of considerations such as
personal interests or geographical situation;

(d) encourage the learning and dissemination of European
languages, by making use of innovative tools such as
digital communication technology and distance learning
and approaches such as those based on the intercompre-
hension of related languages;

(e) promote learner assessment on the basis of recognised
tools — such as the Council of Europe's Common
European Framework of Reference for Languages and the
Europass Language Passport — and, where appropriate,
the European Indicator of Language Competence;

(f) devote particular attention to the further training of
language teachers and to enhancing the language compe-
tences of teachers in general,
in order to promote the
teaching of non-linguistic subjects in foreign languages
(CLIL — Content and Language Integrated Learning);

(g) foster European mobility and exchanges among language
teachers, with the aim that as many as possible should
have spent a period of time in a country where the
language they teach is spoken;

(h) use the Lifelong Learning Programme and relevant
national schemes to provide all target groups — in par-
ticular young people in training and teachers — with
mobility opportunities which can help them improve
their language skills, and initiatives such as the European
to develop learning and teaching
Language Label
materials for languages.

3. Better promote multilingualism as a factor

European economy's
mobility and employability

competitiveness

in the
and people's

2. Strengthen lifelong language learning

(a) endeavour to provide young people, from the earliest age
and continuing beyond general education into vocational
and higher education, with a diverse and high-quality
supply of
education options
enabling them to master at least two foreign languages,
which is a factor of integration in a knowledge-based
society;

language and culture

(b) make efforts to promote the acquisition and regular
updating of language skills for all, in formal, non-formal
and informal contexts;

(c) endeavour to broaden the selection of languages taught
at different levels of education — including recognised

(a) support the provision and learning of a wide range of
languages, in order to help enterprises, especially SMEs,
to broaden their access to markets — in particular emer-
ging markets — across the world;

(b) encourage greater account to be taken of language skills
in the career development of employees, particularly in
small and medium-size enterprises;

(c) draw on the European Structural Funds, where appro-
priate, in order to provide job-specific language courses
in further vocational training and adult education;

(d) value and make use of the linguistic competences of
citizens with migrant backgrounds, as a means of
strengthening both intercultural dialogue and economic
competitiveness.

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4. Promote

the

linguistic diversity and intercultural
dialogue by stepping up assistance for translation,
in
order to encourage the circulation of works and the
dissemination of ideas and knowledge in Europe and
across the world

A. In the framework of existing policies and programmes:

(a) better inform the public, and in particular European
professionals, about national and European assistance
schemes for the translation of literary, scientific or
technical texts, including cultural and creative content
online, surtitling of performing art works and subti-
tling of audiovisual works and films;

(b) coordinate and increase the assistance provided,
European

within
programmes, for measures to support translation;

framework

existing

the

of

(c) develop the possibilities for and quality of training in
translation and improve information about transla-
tion careers and courses given to the relevant target
groups (school pupils, university students, enterprises,
etc.);

(d) support the networking of multilingual terminology
translators and

databases to facilitate the work of
interpreters;

(e) encourage the development of language technologies,
in particular in the field of translation and interpreta-
tion, firstly by promoting cooperation between the
local authorities,
Commission,
research bodies
and industry, and secondly by
ensuring convergence between research programmes,
the identification of areas of application and the
all
deployment
EU languages.

the Member States,

technologies

across

the

of

B. Launch a discussion on the relevance and feasibility, in
the longer term, of a specific assistance programme for
translation able to meet the cultural, technological and
professional challenges involved.

5. Promote EU languages across the world

(a) strengthen cooperation between Member States and
between their cultural institutions or other representative
bodies in third countries, and promote language partner-
ships and intercultural dialogue with third countries;

(b) make best use of the potential of European languages for
developing cultural and economic dialogue with the rest
of the world and enhancing the role of the EU on the
international stage;

(c) enhance cooperation with both national and interna-
tional organisations, in particular the Council of Europe
and UNESCO, working in the field of language learning
and linguistic and cultural diversity.

INVITES THE COMMISSION TO:

1. support Member States in their efforts to achieve the objec-
tives set out in this Resolution, by using the full potential of
European cooperation in education, culture and other rele-
vant policy areas;

2. adopt measures, within the context of the new comprehen-
sive policy framework on multilingualism and within the
limits of its competences, aimed at taking due account of the
linguistic needs of citizens and institutions, paying particular
attention to:

— the relations between the European institutions and the

public,

— the relations between the European institutions and
to
languages and to

national
provide information in all official
promote multilingualism on the Commission's websites;

institutions, and taking particular

care

3. report, by mid-2011, on the implementation of this Resolu-
in cooperation with the Member States and placing

tion,
special emphasis on examples of good practice;

4. periodically review the situation with regard to language
in particular on the basis of any existing
skills in Europe,
research carried out by Member States,
the Common
European Framework of Reference for Languages and, where
Language
appropriate,
Competence.

European

Indicator

the

of