For the unified Europe of 27 Member States, supporting and upgrading human resources through education, vocational training and employment as well as ensuring conditions of social cohesion, are identified as the main challenges for the upcoming years set to formulate sufficient conditions for European economic recovery and paving the way for growth.
The need to tackle the problem of high youth unemployment in Greece requires immediate coordinated actions and initiatives, capitalizing on young people's creativity and innovative ideas.
Taking into consideration the European Union’s 'Youth Opportunities Initiative’ and the current adverse socio-economic conditions in our country, an operational Action Plan has been elaborated aiming at strengthening youth employment and entrepreneurship. This Action Plan constitutes the first cohesive, mutually complementary and integrated effort by the State to support young people, as it integrates into a single plan the actions of all NSRF Operational Programmes addressed to youth and financed both by the European Social Fund (ESF) and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).
The central objective is to put forward targeted development policies and measures for employment and entrepreneurship aimed at young people in the two age groups of 15-24 and 25-35, placing emphasis on young people with low formal qualifications.
The basic categories of interventions regard the reinforcement of apprenticeship and traineeship systems, the establishment of systematic transition programs from education to employment, in order to support the acquisition of first working experience and to promote entrepreneurship. Counselling and mentoring services are the basic tools for supporting young people in their transition to the working or business environment.
To see all the projects included in the Action Plan as well as their implementation course, click here (only available in Greek).
See also:
Action Plan of targeted interventions to strengthen youth employment and entrepreneurship
Indicators and budget
Leaflet
Press Conference material – 10/1/2013 (only available in Greek)