The Galicia Europe Foundation and the General Directorate of Youth, Participation and Volunteer  address the ESF 2021-2027 Operational Programme of Galicia region, focusing on two priorities:

Priority 1: Employment, adaptability, entrepreneurship and social economy

Creation of innovative companies in rural areas linked to Rural Entrepreneurship Poles. The goal is to activate rural areas by providing comprehensive support to entrepreneurs and promoting projects in key sectors such as the primary sector, energy and environment, sustainable tourism, etc.

Priority 4: Youth employment

Training and apprenticeship in dual employment programs for young people registered in the National Youth Guarantee System. This aims to enhance employability and qualifications of individuals aged 16-30.

Labor market integration through employment programs for young people registered in the National Youth Guarantee System. It focuses on developing professional and social skills to help unemployed young people find employment.

Mentoring youth program to improve their employability.

Both priorities align with the specific objective (SO4.a) of ESF+. This objective aims to improve access to employment and activation measures for all jobseekers, particularly young people, including the implementation of the Youth Guarantee. It targets long-term unemployed individuals, disadvantaged groups in the labor market, inactive individuals, and also promotes self-employment and the social economy.

The municipality has formulated a strategic document for the 2021-2027 programming period, which serves as the primary guiding framework. It was developed through extensive involvement of local stakeholders, including citizens and representatives from the local business community.

This document establishes priorities for sustainable development in line with regional and spatial development strategies at higher levels. It aims to achieve specific outcomes for the municipality while leveraging its developmental potentials and addressing local challenges.

Priority 1 and Priority 3 of the plan focus on measures aimed at modernizing the labor market to stimulate youth employment. Additionally, special programs are outlined to promote employment opportunities for vulnerable groups, such as young people, individuals with disabilities, and minority communities. Priority 3 particularly emphasizes the importance of addressing youth unemployment by involving them in measures that facilitate the transition from education to employment and secure their first job.

Furthermore, the document highlights the necessity of enhancing ICT and digital skills among young citizens and high school students.

The Goričko LAG area focuses on sustainable development and aims to create opportunities for maintaining or obtaining better jobs in rural areas, with a specific emphasis on green jobs. The objective is to enhance the quality of life and tourist appeal by improving conditions and investing in professional development. The LAG area also aims to preserve elements that contribute to its visibility.

The LAG pursues four thematic areas of action crucial for local development:

1. Activating endogenous potential and generating new jobs or additional sources of income.
2. Enhancing living conditions to improve the quality of life for the local population.
3. Protecting and developing the natural environment, cultural heritage, and ensuring sustainable use of available resources.
4. Promoting social cohesion and social inclusion of vulnerable target groups in urban areas within the LAG.

A priority of the LAG is to foster greater involvement of young people, women, and other vulnerable groups. The goal is to enhance opportunities for their reintegration into the labor market and social environment, while promoting social inclusion.

The strategy, funded by the EAFRD (European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development) and the ERDF (European Regional Development Fund), aligns with the four thematic areas of action mentioned above, with a primary focus on job creation.

The main aim of the policy instrument (PI) is to develop a community supporting children, young people, and families, which promotes the well-being of children and youth, healthy development, equal opportunities and reducing the risks of poverty and social exclusion for families with children and young people.

The project will target the 3rd objective of the PI: Full and comprehensive development of young people, improving quality of life and strengthening participation. A special focus will be on the young people with fewer opportunities, including those who are living in distant rural areas.

The PI indicates that to provide young people with more opportunities to develop digital skills outside formal education, the development of a system for the youth work is needed, by providing the skills needed to work with young people, as well as by developing digital work in local governments involved in the youth work.

The development of the system for digital and mobile youth work will ensure greater access to youth services for young people living farther from the service centres. Therefore, interregional learning and exchange of good practices in the project framework could help to identify useful solutions for establishing a system of high-quality and sustainable youth work at national and local levels, including strengthening youth work as an autonomous role for municipalities, and improving the professional performance and skills of those involved in youth work.

The II National Youth Plan, assumes itself, therefore, as an instrument of intersectoral coordination of the policy of youth in Portugal and intends to establish a balance between policies comprehensive, given the challenges facing the country, regarding: changes climate change and resource valuation; demographic sustainability and improved employment; inequalities and territorial cohesion; digital transition and innovation; and policies aimed at groups in a more vulnerable situation or with specific needs.

Investment in people young people not only contributes to well-being, inclusion, and social cohesion, but also constitutes a guarantee of a stable future for our democracy and our society, its sustainability, and the development of the whole country. Recognize that young people, due to their condition, face extraordinary challenges in the access and realization of their rights -for example, access to employment and housing- promotes the need for public youth policies, valuing difference (in this case, the age factor) to ensure equality in the design, implementation and evaluation of policies public, namely sectoral ones (work, housing, education, health, sport, culture, among others). Employability is a critical concern addressed in the National Youth Plan, and it is tackled by different government bodies operating under the coordination of IPDJ, aligning with different strategic axes and priorities. Special attention is given to groups in vulnerable situations or with specific needs, considering their specific contexts, whether rural or urban.

The II National Youth Plan is divided into five axes, which correspond to five priority areas, with well-defined political objectives and centered on the rights of young people, with the following structure:

• Axis I — Emancipation and autonomy
• Axis II — Education, training, and science
• Axis III — Citizenship and participation
• Axis IV — Healthy lifestyles
• Axis V — Culture and free creation

Portuguese Institute of sport and Youth, IP, is the public body organisation responsible to support the definition, execution, and evaluation of the public policies of sport and youth in Portugal and assumes the Coordination of the National Youth Plan, ensuring support and follow-up of the execution of registered measures; contact and articulation with the Points Focal points of the Governmental Areas and entities involved, as well as the evaluation of the National Youth Plan, preparing the respective monitoring reports and annual interim reports, on the execution of the measurements.

The goal of the Tartu County Development Strategy is to strengthen youth policies and integrate them into development strategies, thereby enhancing cooperation governance models.

The specific objectives of the strategy are as follows:

1. Promote cooperation in youth policies among local administrations within the Tartu County functional area.
2. Enhance the effectiveness of youth employment policies in rural areas by capitalizing on emerging opportunities, particularly considering the evolving work landscape resulting from the pandemic in recent years.
3. Improve the capacities of policy teams involved in youth and youth employment, including authorities, policymakers, employment officers, and youth officers. This aims to support young people in rural areas, encouraging them to remain in their communities with improved working conditions and access to new work models. Achieving this will involve knowledge exchange, sharing experiences, and implementing good practices.
4. Strengthen youth policies in development strategies and increase youth participation in policy-making processes.
5. Raise awareness among policymakers about the tangible benefits of youth policies. This will involve establishing new instruments, if necessary, for youth participation and fostering cooperation among local stakeholders and different levels of government.