The European Union and Youth Policy

Briefing 01-03-2002

In the EU Member States there are more than 50 million young people aged between 15 and 25. It is the Member States which are main responsible for the area of youth. However, since its creation the European Community has supported the national measures, in particular by establishing different action programmes, such as the Youth for Europe Programme (1988), the European Voluntary Service for Young People (1996) and the current Youth Programme (2000). The European Community would like to further support young people, and in November 2001 the European Commission therefore presented a White Paper on Youth which deals with the following challenges: demographic and social change, the widening gap between young people and public affairs at national, European and international levels and the attendant risk of a 'citizenship deficit'.