Political leaders in the European Union (EU) have announced plans to hold a special summit on developing a strategy to reduce youth unemployment.

EU president Herman Van Rompuy has summoned heads of state from the union's 27 member states to a meeting in Brussels scheduled for February 11th, where policy leaders will attempt to create a 20-year strategy to replace the Lisbon agenda.

Specifically, the European Commission has stated that this new strategy should focus on lowering levels of unemployment for 16 to 25-year-olds, as well as hone the region's green technologies.

The Financial Times reported that debates are raging in the EU over whether the introduction of mandatory targets is necessary in the new agreement, as only two member states managed to raise their employment participation rates above the level set by Lisbon.

Earlier this week, figures released by the EU's data agency Eurostat revealed that inflation rose by 0.9 per cent across continental Europe in December – with further increases expected throughout 2010.