The program aims to promote equal opportunities and equal access, inclusion, diversity and equity through all of its actions. Organizations and participants with fewer opportunities occupy a central place in these objectives, and the program therefore provides them with specific mechanisms and resources. When developing their projects and activities, organizations should adopt an inclusive approach in order to make these projects and activities accessible to various types of participants.
In this regard, national agencies also play a key role in supporting projects by ensuring that they are as inclusive and varied as possible. Based on the general principles and mechanisms established at European level, National Agencies will develop inclusion and diversity plans to best meet the needs of participants with fewer opportunities and resources. support organizations that work with such target groups in a national context.
At the same time, the SALTO resource centers which support the implementation of the program also play a leading role in the promotion and deployment of measures in terms of inclusion and diversity, in particular with regard to the knowledge collection and the development and implementation of capacity building activities for national agency staff and program beneficiaries.
Likewise, the European Executive Agency for Education and Culture (EACEA) plays an equally important role for those parts of the program which are managed centrally. In partner countries, EU delegations and, where they exist, Erasmus + National Offices (BNE) are also key players in
bring the program closer to the target groups targeted by this strategy.
To implement these principles, an inclusion and diversity strategy covering all areas of the program has been developed with a view to support access to finance for a wider range of organizations and reach more participants with fewer opportunities. This strategy also establishes a framework for projects supported by the Erasmus + program which aim to tackle issues relating to inclusion and diversity. Its objective is to contribute to remove the obstacles that hinder the access of different target groups to the possibilities offered by the program in Europe and in the rest of the world.
The list of potential obstacles set out below is not exhaustive and aims to provide a reference tool for taking steps to improve accessibility for people with fewer opportunities as well as the steps taken in their direction. Each of these obstacles can, on its own or in combination with others,
hamper the participation of these groups.
- Disabilities: this category groups together physical, mental, intellectual or sensory disabilities whose interaction with various barriers can hinder a person's full and effective participation in society on the basis of equality with others;
- Health Problems: Obstacles may arise due to health problems such as serious illness, chronic illness or any other condition related to physical or mental health that prevents participation in the program;
- Obstacles related to education and training systems: people who encounter difficulties in education and training systems for various reasons, as well as young people who drop out of school, NEETs (people not working, not in education). education or training) and adults with low skill levels may face barriers. While other factors may also play a role, these educational difficulties - which may also be linked to personal circumstances - are essentially the result of an education system which creates structural constraints or which does not take special needs fully into account. of each one. Some potential participants are also hampered in their efforts when the very structure of the study programs complicates the organization of a mobility experience abroad for the purposes of learning or training within the framework of studies;
- Cultural differences: While cultural differences may be perceived as barriers by people from all backgrounds, they may have particular repercussions on people with fewer opportunities. These differences can constitute significant obstacles to learning in general, especially for people with an immigrant background or who have arrived as refugees - in particular recently arrived migrants -, people belonging to an ethnic or national minority, service users. of sign language, people who have difficulties with linguistic adaptation or cultural integration, etc. Being exposed to foreign languages and cultural differences while participating in any of the program activities may discourage some people and limit, to some extent, the benefits they might derive from them. These cultural differences can even deter potential participants from seeking assistance under the program and thus constitute a real barrier to entry into the program;
- Social barriers: Difficulties in social adjustment, such as lack of social skills, anti-social or risky behavior, delinquency (or a history of delinquent), excessive use of drugs or alcohol (or a history of drug addict), or social marginalization, can be an obstacle. Other social obstacles can arise from the family situation, such as being the first member of a family to access higher education, being a parent (especially a single parent), caregiver, breadwinner or orphan, or the fact of living or having lived in an institution;
- Economic obstacles: the economic difficulties experienced, in particular, by people with a low standard of living or low income, learners who have to work to support themselves, people who depend on the social protection system, the long-term unemployed duration, people in precarious situations or in a situation of poverty, people without fixed abode and people who have debts or financial problems can constitute an obstacle. Other obstacles may be linked to the limited portability of services (in particular support services for people with fewer opportunities) which should be able to "follow" participants when they go to a distant place or, a fortiori. , abroad ;
- Barriers related to discrimination: discrimination based on sex, age, ethnicity, religion, beliefs, sexual orientation, disability or intersectional factors (i.e. say that a combination of several of the barriers related to discrimination mentioned above) may give rise to barriers;
- Geographic barriers: living in a remote or rural area, on a small island or in a region peripheral / outermost, in the suburbs, in an under-served area (limited public transport, lack of infrastructure) or in an underdeveloped region in a third country, for example, can be an obstacle.
