Vienna, 16/03/2006 (Agence Europe) - The “common European education area is on its way”, the Austrian Minister for Education, Elisabeth Gehrer, said with delight at the opening of the informal meeting of European education ministers in Vienna on Thursday. The meeting, which ends on 17 March, will allow ministers to discuss the future of the European professional qualifications framework (CEPC), a tool intended to facilitate the transfer and recognition of qualifications obtained by European citizens that study in several Member States. The CEPC will thus serve as a common reference, covering not only vocational training but also general education (secondary and higher). The European Commission had begun consultation procedure last summer on this tool with 32 European countries (EU, EEA and candidate countries), a consultation that ended on 22 December. The informal meeting in Vienna was to allow Commissioner Jan Figel, responsible for education, to give ministers the comments that he had received, and provide an opportunity for ministers to pursue dialogue. The CEPC is a “jackpot” for Europe, “unprecedented progress”, Ms Gehrer stressed, recalling that education is the key for ”more growth and well-being in Europe”. Two other themes were also on the Vienna agenda: the role of European universities in implementing the Lisbon objectives and the creation of a new pole of excellence in Europe: the European Institute of Technology, presented by Commission President José Manuel Barroso and Commissioner Figel on 22 February. EUROPE will come back to this.