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Latvia

Strategies for youth employment

Strategies for youth employment
Yes

Youth employment strategy planned in the next 2 years

Discussions within the government
No
Consultations with national-level stakeholders (e.g. employers’ and workers’ associations, youth councils, etc.)
No
A draft strategy already exists
No
Other (please specify)
No

Countries with national action plans for youth employment

Monitoring framework (timeline and activity/outcome indicators, e.g. youth labour market indicators)
No
Funding (indicative budget to implement the plan)
Yes
Institutional responsibilities (e.g. ministries/agencies in charge of specific planned activities )
Yes
Other, specify
Yes

Public funding for the national youth employment strategy

Public funding for the national youth employment strategy
Yes

Additional information:
• The State Employment Agency - active labour market policy measures, also specifically targeted at youth. • The Agency for International Programmes for Youth - measures to support NEETs.

Youth in the national development / employment strategy

Youth in the national development / employment strategy
Yes

Additional information:
Young people are a target group in: - The Youth Guarantee programme - Specific active labour market policy measures - National Development Plan of Latvia for 2021-2027 - Social Protection and Labor Market Policy Guidelines for 2021-2027 - Child, Youth and Family Development Guidelines 2022-2027

Countries with national goals for youth employment

Countries with national goals for youth employment
Yes

Additional information:
Latvia has established national goals and objectives to promote youth employment across several strategic documents. These objectives are aligned with broader social protection, labor market development, and youth inclusion priorities. 1. Social Protection and Labour Market Policy Guidelines 2021–2027 - This policy framework outlines goals to improve labor market integration and social inclusion, including: • Reducing the share of young people aged 15–24 who are not in employment, education, or training (NEETs) as a key indicator of progress. 2. Latvian National Development Plan 2021–2027 - This high-level strategic plan includes youth-specific labor market indicators, such as: • Employment rate of recent graduates (aged 20–34) from secondary and higher education (within 1–3 years of graduation); • Reduction in the NEET rate among 15–24-year-olds, reinforcing youth activation as a development priority. 3. Child, Youth and Family Development Guidelines 2022–2027 - This youth-focused strategy sets targeted goals related to labor market participation and civic engagement, including: • Reducing the proportion of NEETs among 15–24-year-olds; • Ensuring that young people aged 15–24 represent at least the same proportion in active labor market policy measures as their share of the total registered unemployed; • Promoting regular volunteering among youth as a means of developing transferable skills and social capital.

Countries with quantitative targets for youth employment

Countries with quantitative targets for youth employment
Yes

Additional information:
• Reduce the proportion of young people aged 15–24 who are not in education, employment, or training (NEET) from 7.9% in 2018 to 6% by 2027. • Increase the employment rate of recent graduates (aged 20–34, who completed secondary or higher education within the past 1–3 years) from 84.1% in 2018 to 88% by 2027. • Reduce the proportion of 15–24-year-olds not in education, employment, or training (NEET) from 7.8% in 2018 to 6% by 2027. • Increase the proportion of young people who volunteer regularly (several times a year) from 27% in 2020 to 37% by 2027. • Increase the proportion of young people aged 15–24 participating in active labour market policy (ALMP) measures from 6.3% in 2019 to 7.2% by 2027.

Policy areas in national youth employment strategies

Macroeconomic and Sectoral policies
No
Enterprise Development
No
Education, Training and skills development
Yes
Labour Demand
Yes
Labour Law and Legislation
No
Labour Market Policies
Yes
Other (please specify)
Yes

Social partners' inclusion in the youth employment strategy

Workers
Implementation of youth employment strategies/programmes (e.g. social partners as official implementers of the strategy or programme)
Consulted
Assessment of youth employability (alignment of youth qualifications and skills to labour market needs)
Fully involved
Monitoring and evaluation of youth employment interventions (e.g. active labour market programmes)
Consulted
Awareness raising, marketing and promotion of youth employment (e.g. campaign to promote youth employment)
Fully involved
Formulation of youth employment strategies (e.g. national action plan for youth)
Fully involved
Development of youth employment programmes (e.g. sectoral programme with a clear target to employ X number of youth)
Partially involved (only for some elements of the strategy)
Employers
Implementation of youth employment strategies/programmes (e.g. social partners as official implementers of the strategy or programme)
Consulted
Assessment of youth employability (alignment of youth qualifications and skills to labour market needs)
Fully involved
Monitoring and evaluation of youth employment interventions (e.g. active labour market programmes)
Consulted
Awareness raising, marketing and promotion of youth employment (e.g. campaign to promote youth employment)
Fully involved
Formulation of youth employment strategies (e.g. national action plan for youth)
Fully involved
Development of youth employment programmes (e.g. sectoral programme with a clear target to employ X number of youth)
Partially involved (only for some elements of the strategy)

Youth-led organizatios' inclusion in the national strategy

Fully involved
Yes
Partially involved (only for some elements of the strategy)
No
Consulted
No
Informed
No
Not involved
No

Countries with national partnerships for youth employment

Countries with national partnerships for youth employment
Yes

Additional information:
Regular work of Youth Advisory Council, cooperation with social partners, employers and NGOs within active labour market policy measures (subsidized employment measures, work experience in NGOs for young people, on-the-job training etc.), regular work of sectoral councils (https://www.nozaruekspertupadomes.lv/)

Inclusiveness of vulnerable groups in national strategies

Women
No
Migrant Workers
No
NEETs
Yes
People with disabilities
Yes
Low skilled workers
Yes
Rural workers
Yes
Other (please specify)
Yes

Youth employment strategies and international cooperation

Youth employment strategies and international cooperation
Yes

Additional information:
ILO, European Commission, EU Youth Guarantee Coordinators Chain Latvia participated in the ILO project on Monitoring Performance of the Youth Guarantee (cooperation with the Ministry of Welfare, PES and other involved partners). https://www.ilo.org/employment/Whatwedo/Eventsandmeetings/WCMS_545620/lang--en/index.htm