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The European Commission decided on Wednesday in Brussels to spend 19 billion Euro(27 billion U.S. dollars) to help ease the pressure of unemployment amid the world financial crisis.
SOUNDBITE (English) by José Manuel Barroso, EC President: The action we proposed is settled on three priorities of maintaining employment, creating jobs and promoting mobility; upgrading skills and matching labour market needs, and increasing access to employment.
Barroso said that unemployment is one of the priorities that most concerns the EU, so would not require member states to provide their own funds to match the EU's 19 billion Euro aid from the European Social Fund.
Barroso also indicated that EU is planning to create a new loans facility, together with the European Investment Bank Group and other partners, in a bid to provide credit for those who wanted to set up a business but have difficulty in getting bank backing.
The unemployment rate in the 16-nation euro-zone reached 9.2 percent in April, while the rate in the 27-nation EU stands at 8.6 percent. There are more than 21 million people seeking work.
Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Brussels.
(XHTV June 5, 2009) | 
