Objectives
The general objectives for Nordplus 2023–2027 are to:
- strengthen and develop Nordic and Baltic cooperation on education, including early childhood and care, and help to create a Nordic–Baltic educational area,
- support, build on, reap the benefits of and promote innovative products and processes in education through the systematic exchange of experiences and good practice,
- contribute to the development of quality and innovation in the educational systems for lifelong learning in the participating Nordplus countries through cooperation in education and training, as well as co-operation with the labour market on development projects, exchange programmes and networking,
- enhance mobility for educational purposes and expand digital collaboration in education in the region,
- enhance opportunities for all, regardless of background and resources, to participate in regional educational collaboration and to gain new knowledge and skills based on collaboration between organisations,
- promote Nordic languages and culture and mutual Nordic-Baltic linguistic and cultural understanding,
- improve inter-Nordic language comprehension (primarily between Danish, Swedish and Norwegian), especially among children and young people,
- stimulate interest in and knowledge and understanding of the languages of the Nordic countries essential to society (Danish, Finnish, Faroese, Greenlandic, Icelandic, Norwegian, Sami and Swedish) and Nordic sign language, and
- revitalise national minority languages in the Nordic Region for cultural and inclusive purposes.
Nordplus Highlight Starting 2025: A Competitive Nordic and Baltic Region
In line with the Nordic Council of Ministers’ vision of the Nordic region as the world’s most sustainable and integrated region by 2030, Nordplus presents a new highlight starting 2025: “Skills and Knowledge for a Competitive Nordic and Baltic Region”.
A competitive region is a sustainable and equitable region that promotes education supporting needed competence. The emphasis of the highlight is therefore placed on improving basic skills in language and arithmetic, which are crucial for success in studies. Knowledge of STEM subjects, digital skills and entrepreneurship are also important to stand up to the competition from the rest of the world. The fact that individuals grow through mobility, and gain new perspectives and experience of other cultures, also increases their possibility of establishing themselves in the labour market and contributing to a sustainable society.
Nordplus highlights relate to all Nordplus sub-programmes and are a way of encouraging inclusion of their particular issues, but there are no requirements for the content of new projects to be guided by the highlights. Only the quality of the application determines what projects become approved.