Transcript Demographic change and migration: challenges & solutions. Lithuanian case 2007-09-27 By Rimantas Šadžius Minister of Finance Republic of Lithuania.

Demographic change and
migration:
challenges & solutions.
Lithuanian case
2007-09-27
By Rimantas Šadžius
Minister of Finance
Republic of Lithuania
Demographic challenges
in Europe
• Population decline in some regions (mainly in the new
Member States) due to:
– Migration to more prosperous regions of the EU;
– Negative population growth in general;
• Unfavourable tendencies in the age structure of the
population;
– The number young people (under 15) declining;
– The number of older ones (above 64) increasing;
• Rural areas continue to loose population due to:
– The limited choice of jobs;
– Lower living standards in rural areas.
… and in Lithuania
• Low birth rate (1,3) and ageing population 20
% of population are older than 60 years;
• Emigration and increasing shortages of
labour force in some areas as result of it;
• Depopulation of rural areas.
Problems caused by
ageing population
– Increasing demand for quality health and
social services;
– Older people more difficult adapt to changes
in labour market;
– Pressure to budget (welfare of older people
depend on the level of social pensions).
Emigration from Lithuania: 3 % of
population during 2004-2006
50
45
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
48,1
thousands
32,5
27,8
22,7
2003
2004
2005
2006
Depopulation of rural areas
• Low level of living environment (Insufficient
quality of public services, underdeveloped
basic infrastructure);
• Lack of good jobs (48 % rural inhabitants
work in agriculture) results in low income;
• Better opportunities in capital city or abroad.
Any medicine for those ills?
• Improvement of living conditions in lagging behind regions,
especially in rural areas: further development of quality public
urban and rural infrastructure and services. Increasing attractiveness
of those areas for private investment.
• Creation of better jobs. Increasing the share of higher value added
businesses in the economy. Increasing the support for R&D,
innovation activities. Diversification of business activity in rural areas.
• Improvement in quality of
education: Strengthening
interconnectivity between the educational system and the needs of
labour market. Raising the levels of lifelong learning.
• Strengthening local governance: involvement of local communities
in decision making to reflect local needs.
• Special measures designed for returning migrants to Lithuania.
How we plan to address
these challenges with EU
Cohesion policy support for 2007-2013
• Greater emphasis on living environment: improvement of
basic infrastructure (transport, energy, information technologies)
and services (education, health, social and other infrastructure)
contributing to living quality;
• Creating more and better jobs: 10 percent of structural
assistance will go to research and technological development;
• Investing in the development of human resources especially
into adaptability of workers skills and life-long learning
programmes (9 percent); reorientation to other economic
activities of rural inhabitants employed in agriculture.
• Stronger involvement of counties and municipalities in
planning structural assistance in accordance with needs of their
people.
Demographic challenges
and future of EU Cohesion Policy:
• Complex approach is needed: This approach should
include more divers actions to make regions more
attractive for people to live, work and invest.
• As well as more flexible one: no general recipe for
all EU regions because causes of problems and cures
might be different and very specific. Regions
themselves should decide what actions are most
important and beneficial for their people.