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Description
Integration of young people in the labor market remains a challenge, as youth unemployment remains high within the young population. Young people now need, more than ever, support and recommendations to learn new skills, to adapt to the new demands of the labor market or simply to discover their vocation and ensure their existence.
Our aim is to support NEETs from Romania, Spain, Italy and Bulgaria to enhance their skills through blended learning experiences and to support them in entering the labor market and to decrease migration of youth abroad.
Between 2018 and 2021, 1,600 NEETs in Bulgaria, Italy, Romania and Spain will receive training and support to acquire the skills needed to find a job or start their own business. In addition, the project aims to prevent another 1,000 young people enrolled in a vocational and technical education from falling into the NEET category, by providing them with training and counselling.
Within 3 years, due to our efforts, at least 500 NEETs had access to job activation activities, 400 NEETs had participated in basic business incubation activities, and at least 40 NEETs had opened their own businesses.
Summary of project results
The project NEETs in Entrepreneurship aimed to support young NEETs from Romania, Spain, Italy and Bulgaria, to enhance their Life Skills, Business & Community and Employability Skills through blended learning experiences and to increase their opportunities to accede to the labour market and to decrease the young generation migration abroad. We conducted a baseline study in all the partner countries and gathered information to create a concrete NEET profile and analyze the context for this phenomenon.
1,600 young people from 4 European countries benefited from various capacity building activities, despite the difficult context created by the global pandemic of COVID-19, through the project "NEETs in Entrepreneurship". The project included trainings, workshops, webinars, access to resources on professions, entrepreneurship, education, internship opportunities, shadow jobs and mentoring, entrepreneurial practice and direct support, through counseling and funding, for starting a business, and, in addition, prevention activities for students in the final years of high school, at risk of dropping out of school, on career guidance topics. 4 business hubs were developed in the 4 countries to target and help NEETs integration to labor market through family business and small-scale entrepreneurship. 40 young NEETs from Bulgaria, Italy, Romania and Spain had set up businesses, receiving financial support and project advice.
Our goal was for the young people selected for the project to find their purpose and a job or to go through the steps to start a business. We wanted to give them inspiration, motivation and help them develop the skills and competencies they need to change their lives. Although it was difficult at first because they lacked motivation, and they started from the premise that they manage in the current state of inertia, without too much effort, participating in project activities, some of them understood why it is important to overcome their condition. and they gained more confidence in their own strength.
The learning by doing entrepreneurship education & practice model approach, tackled the involved countries common challenge of low youth employment rate, with the multitude of social and economic effects related, and acts to prevent the work migration of Romanian youth population in Spain and Italy, which affects the healthy future development in region.
Summary of bilateral results
The NEETs in Entrepreneurship project was implemented with the financial support provided through the EEA and Norway Grants, Fund for Youth Employment. It was the first project that the project partners implemented for NEETs and working with partners as experts from Norway was valuable for the project overall. We have shared experience, knowledge and results related to project activities and other activities of working with NEETs, improving knowledge and understanding regarding NEETs'' behaviour and factors of influence their development and integration in society and on the labour market.