- 2015Implementation
- 2016Implementation
- 2017Implementation
- 2018Implementation
- 2019Implementation
- 2020Implementation
- 2021Completed
Background
Youth programme supported the implementation of the Youth field development plan 2014-20, which outlined the strategic objectives for young people and youth work.
Objectives
The overall goal of the plan was to establish a coherent and creative society by providing young people with ample opportunities for self-development and self-realisation. For this, youth policies must be more efficient and young people must have more choices to discover their own creative and developmental potential. They must have a lower risk of exclusion and they must be able to participate in decision-making.
Description
In the Youth programme, measures and activities to achieve the overall goal of providing young people with ample opportunities for self-development and self-realisation are stipulated. For example, the programme offers services to (re)integrate young people not in employment, education or training (NEETs) into education, and to improve their employability. For this, youth workers locate NEETs (for example, through networking), motivate them, and provide them with individualised support.
Since 2015, over 10 000 young people have benefited from this service.
EUR 3.1 million has been allocated from the EU (ESIF) and the State budget for 2015-18 to put this measure into effect.
To provide young people with competences and experiences that increase their competitiveness in the labour market and help them make good and informed decisions about their future, the following actions (not necessarily related to training) have been provided:
- youth summer camps prepare young people for the labour market by giving them the opportunity to gain practical work experience during the summer. In addition to earning a small salary, young people become familiar with different types of work, receive career guidance and acquaint themselves with labour market legislation;
- community practice provides secondary school students with the opportunity to carry out community practice at a local NGO. This enables young people to gain experiences that will...
In the Youth programme, measures and activities to achieve the overall goal of providing young people with ample opportunities for self-development and self-realisation are stipulated. For example, the programme offers services to (re)integrate young people not in employment, education or training (NEETs) into education, and to improve their employability. For this, youth workers locate NEETs (for example, through networking), motivate them, and provide them with individualised support.
Since 2015, over 10 000 young people have benefited from this service.
EUR 3.1 million has been allocated from the EU (ESIF) and the State budget for 2015-18 to put this measure into effect.
To provide young people with competences and experiences that increase their competitiveness in the labour market and help them make good and informed decisions about their future, the following actions (not necessarily related to training) have been provided:
- youth summer camps prepare young people for the labour market by giving them the opportunity to gain practical work experience during the summer. In addition to earning a small salary, young people become familiar with different types of work, receive career guidance and acquaint themselves with labour market legislation;
- community practice provides secondary school students with the opportunity to carry out community practice at a local NGO. This enables young people to gain experiences that will enhance their employability and increase their active participation in society;
- mobile workshops aim to introduce young people to professions, work practices and tools in the fields of carpentry and metalwork by offering them a hands-on opportunity to test the work tasks associated with these professions. For this, a trailer equipped with appropriate tools is driven around Estonia, stopping at youth centres, hobby schools and youth camps, and carries out workshops for interested young people. In addition, young people are introduced to the medical field (nursing and bio-analytics) through a virtual reality workshop, which is followed by a practical workshop where young people can practice the work tasks, they saw through virtual reality device.
In 2019, the youth policy actions were introduced through virtual reality and augmented reality workshops. The chosen topics matched the trends observed in the report on the health care sector by the labour market needs monitoring and skills forecasting system OSKA. The aim of the workshops was to raise young people's career awareness (including opportunities offered by VET) by giving them practical hands-on experience with various professions and to increase their early contact with the world of work. The workshops were organised in different youth centres, fairs and camps all over Estonia.
In 2020, the activities to (re)integrate young people not in employment, education or training (NEETs) into education and to improve their employability continued. The summer work programme offered young people the opportunity to gain their first work experience and to get acquainted with different fields of work and labour legislation. A project run by professional laboratories, that aimed at introducing young people to different occupations, supporting their adaptation to working life and reducing the risk of exclusion through virtual workshops, focused on occupations in the health sector.
The constraints caused by the COVID-19 pandemic set limits, mainly to international activities, but most activities were carried out in a virtual format. In 2020, despite all this, young people's satisfaction with youth work increased.
Activities to support young people through the crisis were added, and the situation encouraged innovation and the introduction of smart solutions - especially smart youth work.
In 2021, the activities to (re)integrate young people not in employment, education or training (NEETs) into education and to improve their employability continued. The number of NEETs has increased over the last 2 years, but they have become more complicated to access due to COVID constraints. Young people's access to online services has become more difficult due to the deteriorating economic situation, limiting the options of smart youth work. However, individual counselling and activation activities were used to support the return of more than 1 700 young people to education or the labour market.
As part of the professional laboratories' programme, practical virtual workshops were organised, where more than 7 000 young people became acquainted with occupations in the wood and furniture sector, medicine and youth work.
For progress on youth guarantee as of 2022, see related policy developments.
Bodies responsible
- Ministry of Education and Research
- Estonian Youth Work Centre
- Education and Youth Board
Target groups
Learners
- Young people (15-29 years old)
- Young people not in employment, education or training (NEETs)
Thematic categories
Supporting lifelong learning culture and increasing participation
Lifelong learning refers to all learning (formal, non-formal or informal) taking place at all stages in life and resulting in an improvement or update in knowledge, skills, competences and attitudes or in participation in society from a personal, civic, cultural, social or employment-related perspective (Erasmus+, Glossary of terms, https://erasmus-plus.ec.europa.eu/programme-guide/part-d/glossary-common-terms). A systemic approach to CVET is crucial to ensure adaptability to evolving demands.
This broad thematic category looks at ways of creating opportunities and ensuring access to re-skilling and upskilling pathways, allowing individuals to progress smoothly in their learning throughout their lives with better permeability between general and vocational education and training, and better integration and compatibility between initial and continuing VET and with higher education. Individuals should be supported in acquiring and updating their skills and competences and navigating easily through education and training systems. Strategies and campaigns that promote VET and LLL as an attractive and high-quality pathway, providing quality lifelong guidance and tailored support to design learning and career paths, and various incentives (financial and non-financial) to attract and support participation in VET and LLL fall into this thematic category as well.
This thematic category also includes many initiatives on making VET inclusive and ensuring equal education and training opportunities for various groups of learners, regardless of their personal and economic background and place of residence – especially those at risk of disadvantage or exclusion, such as persons with disabilities, the low-skilled and low-qualified, minorities, migrants, refugees and others.
This thematic sub-category refers to initiatives that promote VET and lifelong learning implemented at any level and by any stakeholder. It also covers measures to ensure and broaden access to information about VET to various target groups, including targeted information and promotional campaigns (e.g. for parents, adult learners, vulnerable groups). Among others, it includes national skill competitions and fairs organised to attract learners to VET.
This thematic sub-category refers to providing high-quality lifelong learning and career guidance services, including making full use of Europass and other digital services and resources.
This thematic sub-category refers to making VET pathways and programmes inclusive and accessible for all. It concerns measures and targeted actions to increase access and participation in VET and lifelong learning for learners from all vulnerable groups, and to support their school/training-to-work transitions. It includes measures to prevent early leaving from education and training. The thematic sub-category covers measures promoting gender balance in traditionally ‘male’ and ‘female’ professions and addressing gender-related and other stereotypes. The vulnerable groups are, but not limited to: persons with disabilities; the low-qualified/-skilled; minorities; persons of migrant background, including refugees; people with fewer opportunities due to their geographical location and/or their socioeconomically disadvantaged circumstances.
Subsystem
Further reading
Country
Type of development
Cedefop, & ReferNet. (2025). Youth programme 2014-21: Estonia. In Cedefop, & ReferNet. (2025). Timeline of VET policies in Europe (2024 update) [Online tool].
https://www.cedefop.europa.eu/en/tools/timeline-vet-policies-europe/search/28170