Fewer young people leave school without qualifications

The school dropout number has nearly halved over the past decade, from 71,000 to 39,000 young people, according to figures shown by the Ministry of Education.

According to Marja van Bijsterveldt, Minister of Education, this is one of the reasons that youth unemployment has not risen and that the figure is low compared to neighboring countries. The government wants to lower the number of dropouts to 25.000 by year 2016.

“We desperately need our young people in the labor market. The companies and society need qualified employees, especially in the area pf healthcare and technology, “says van Bijsterveldt. So far, the number of pupils leaving schools before graduation does not drop rapidly enough to achieve the 2016 goal, and in some provinces the number of dropouts have even increased.