State Pact on Education - Spain

In November 2024, a new State Pact on Education was launched in Spain. The plan addresses a range of challenges present in the Spanish education system: from early school leaving to lower rates of participation in adult training or lifelong learning activities. 

More specifically, the plan is meant to spearhead Spain's digital transformation and solidify capacity in key areas. 

About this initiative

The State Pact on education attempts to respond to several challenges. According to the latest data from the Ministry of Education 2024, the early school leaving rate in Spain stood at 13.6%, exceeding the EU average with close to 5%. This is particularly evident in youngsters from disadvantaged families, where 26% drop out of education early, compared to 5% in average households throughout Spain. This data underscores the layers of inequality, and how they translate into the world of work. 

In addition, Spain is lagging behind the digital transition in other indicators too. While youth unemployment stands at 14% in EU-27, in Spain this figure exceeds 22%. Spanish students are also performing worse than expected in PISA results (reading comprehension and maths), with few improvements over the last decade. 

Why is this a good practice? 

The State Education Pact is well placed to deliver concrete results. Even though the agreement is quite novel (the initiative was launched in November 2024), it has already managed to bring on board a variety of private citizens, public bodies, and a range of organisations, SMEs, and social partners. It also aims to fill in gaps caused by insufficient investment in education (Spain invests around 4.6% of its annual budget in education, against the EU average of 5%). 

The plan is deeply grounded in supporting and uplifting marginalised communities by focusing on early school leavers, rural areas, and parents with limited financial resources, which makes it score high in areas like accessibility and relevance.