The European Conference “No Generation left behind– pathways to inclusion for current and future generations” was organized by the Think-Tank “Social DOers” and hosted by MEP Victor Negrescu (S&D) and MEP Terry Reintke (Greens-EFA).
The Conference took place on the 25th of April in the European Parliament (Brussels) with the support of EU40 Network and European Parliament Youth Intergroup.
“No Generation left behind” is a call for coordinated action among all stakeholders – working towards a competitive Europe, based on the economic & social inclusion of current and future generations.
The context:
The Conference is organized in the framework of “European Coalition for the rights of young NEETs” initiative – a multi-stakeholder platform advocating for better policies and programmes in order to ensure the full social & economic integration of young people, across Europe.
The Conference successfully achieved to:
- bring together a variety of stakeholders – MEPs, experts & representatives of: NGOs, Social Partners, Business sector and public institutions
- present opportunities for integration of young NEETs
- propose Policy recommendations for the integration of Young NEETs (including prevention measures for young people at risk of becoming NEET)
- launch the European Campaign “No Generation Left Behind”
The final Agenda of the event: Agenda updated
The campaign aims at:
- raising awareness on the NEET phenomenon and the diversity of young people in NEET situations;
- contributing to cross-sectorial public policies with a view to support the full social and economic integration of young people;
- raising awareness on categories of young people at risk of becoming NEET – (young refugees, young women etc. with an aim to prevent another potential crisis that will lead to even bigger numbers of young NEETs);
- promote the use of digital opportunities to bridge the skills gap, in the context in which by 2020 it’s foreseen a gap of almost 800.000 jobs in the ICT sector and about 90% of all jobs will require a certain level of digital skills;
- supporting national governments & stakeholders in implementing European policies & making better use of the existing funding – targeting both prevention and intervention measures.
Why a specific Coalition for the rights of young people in NEET situations?
Currently, in the EU, there are 12% of young people aged 15-24 years old in NEET situations, nevertheless those numbers increase up to 19,7% for the young people aged 25-29 yrs. old and they stay almost unchanged for the age group 30-34, namely 19,4%, – thus, showing a structural problem for the entire Europe, which is continuously creating and maintaining a lost and invisible generation.
With a generation of children and young people at risk of poverty (children under 18 – 26,9% and young people – 31,2%), even more than the elderly population (18% – population 60 yrs old or over), Europe is missing the opportunity to use its most valuable resources and lacks the necessary measures to ensure a pro-active approach, focused on prevention and early intervention policies.
