The first annual thematic seminar of projects funded by the EEA and Norwegian Fund for Youth Employment under the Active Youth Call for Proposals was held in Brussels from 25 to 26 November 2019, with the Interregion Forum Association represented in the IPS4NEETs project.

The event provided an opportunity for participants to present the results of their projects, share best practices and reinforce synergies between projects through the exchange of experiences. The program focused on learning and skills development in the field of youth employment. Encouraging project partners to actively participate ensured knowledge sharing relevant and useful for all 26 projects, focusing on common challenges such as reaching NEET young people, developing their skills (including motivation and commitment), working with local stakeholders, work-based learning , entrepreneurship and job creation.

As part of the Fund’s capacity building activities, a baseline study will be carried out to analyze youth employment challenges and the situation of youth employment policies in the 15 + 3 beneficiary countries. As part of the event, participants in the study, including Intera Region staff member Luca Koltai, discussed the approach and preliminary results, and then shared them with other participants in the seminar.

The baseline study, which can also serve as support material for projects, will be published as an appendix to Youth Employment Online Magazine, expected in January 2020. The main objectives of the analysis are:

analysis of youth employment challenges and the situation of youth employment policies in order to monitor progress in the implementation of projects;

contextualisation of projects promoting youth employment;

comparative examination of youth employment challenges and youth employment initiatives and policies to facilitate mutual learning between project partners.