EN    EN EN 
EN    EN  COMMISSION OF THE E UROPEAN COMMUNITIES 
Brussels, 27.4.2009 
SEC(2009) 549 
  
COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT 
 
accompanying document to the 
COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSI ON TO THE COUNCIL, THE 
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE EU ROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL 
COMMITTEE AND THE COMMI TTEE OF THE REGIONS 
 
Youth - Investing and Empowering 
  
EU YOUTH REPORT 
 
{COM(2009) 200} 
{SEC(2009) 545} {SEC(2009) 546} {SEC(2009) 548} 
EN 2   EN COMMISSION STAFF WO RKING DOCUMENT  
 
accompanying document to the  
COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSI ON TO THE COUNCIL, THE 
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT, THE EU ROPEAN ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL 
COMMITTEE AND THE COMMI TTEE OF THE REGIONS 
 
Youth - Investing and Empowering 
  
EU YOUTH REPORT 
EN 3   EN TABLE OF CONTENTS 
INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................... ...7 
1. DEMOGRAPHY ........................................................................................................10 1.1. Close to 100 million young people live in the European Union.................................10 1.2. Changes in the working population ............................................................................10 1.3. Youth immigration and mobility ................................................................................11 2. TRANSITION FROM EDUCAT ION TO EMPLOYMENT.....................................14 
2.1. Education ................................................................................................................. ...14 
2.1.1. Longer schooling for children ....................................................................................16 2.1.2. Choosing paths after co mpulsory schooling...............................................................16 
2.1.3. Educational orientation and early transition to work..................................................17 
2.1.4. Gender differences in upper secondary education......................................................17 2.1.5. More students in th e knowledge triangle....................................................................17 
2.1.6. An emerging gender gap in tertiary studies................................................................18 2.1.7. Older students .......................................................................................................... ...18 
2.1.8. Learning foreign languages ........................................................................................19 2.1.9. Increased mobility, but not for everyone....................................................................19 2.1.10. The level of education: a co mparison between generations .......................................21 
2.1.11. Early school leavers................................................................................................... .21 
2.1.12. Parents' education and academic success ...................................................................23 2.1.13. Public financial support in accessing higher education..............................................24 2.1.14. Youth participation in non-formal education .............................................................24 2.2. From school to work...................................................................................................26 2.2.1. Activity rates.......................................................................................................... .....26 
2.2.2. Who are the young economically inactive people? ....................................................28 2.2.3. Off the beaten paths: away from education and activity ............................................28 2.2.4. Transition between education and work takes place mainly between 18 and 24 .......28 
2.2.5. The higher the level of education, th e lower the risk of unemployment ....................29 
2.2.6. Diplomas – no guarantee for employment..................................................................30 2.2.7. Young people in unemployment.................................................................................31 
EN 4   EN 2.2.8. Long term youth unemployment ................................................................................32 
2.2.9. Working while studying, studying while working .....................................................33 2.2.10. Temporary contracts ...................................................................................................3 4 
2.2.11. Part-time work ......................................................................................................... ...35 
2.2.12. Young entrepreneurs...................................................................................................3 5 
2.2.13. Focus of activity ...................................................................................................... ...36 
2.3. Young people and social exclusion ............................................................................37 2.3.1. Unequal access to opportunities .................................................................................37 2.3.2. Living conditions....................................................................................................... .37 
2.3.3. Young people at risk of poverty .................................................................................38 3. ACTIVE CITIZENSHIP ............................................................................................41 3.1. Citizenship and participation ......................................................................................41 3.1.1. Active citizenship: today’s choices,  the life of tomorrow’s community ....................41 
3.1.2. Information: the key to participation? ........................................................................41 3.1.3. Youth Participation..................................................................................................... 41 
3.1.4. A decline in traditional membership of organisations................................................42 3.1.5. Interest in participative democracy.............................................................................44 3.1.6. Legal framework for participation structures .............................................................44 3.1.7. Youth councils.......................................................................................................... ..45 
3.1.8. Youth parliaments....................................................................................................... 45 
3.1.9. Other participatory structures .....................................................................................46 3.1.10. Youth interest in politics............................................................................................. 46 
3.1.11. Participation by young people in the mech anisms of representative democracy .......48 
3.1.12. Promoting participation through the European Union................................................49 3.1.13. Trust in institutions.................................................................................................. ...50 
3.2. Voluntary activities.....................................................................................................5 1 
3.2.1. Older generations are more active in voluntar y activities ..........................................52 
3.2.2. Youth and voluntary activities: more advocacy than practise ....................................52 3.2.3. Obstacles............................................................................................................... ......54 
3.2.4. Initiating voluntary projects at the European level.....................................................54 4. LIFESTYLES .............................................................................................................56 
EN 5   EN 4.1. Family life............................................................................................................... ....56 
4.1.1. General trends.......................................................................................................... ...56 
4.1.2. Leaving the parental home..........................................................................................57 4.1.3. Reasons for staying at home longer than before.........................................................58 4.1.4. Household composition ..............................................................................................58 4.1.5. Marital status of young people ...................................................................................60 4.1.6. Becoming a parent ......................................................................................................6 2 
4.1.7. More babies born outside marriage ............................................................................64 4.2. Youth and Health........................................................................................................66  
4.2.1. Young people expect to live longer ............................................................................68 4.2.2. Young Europeans perceive themselves as healthy .....................................................68 4.2.3. Young people and their weight...................................................................................68 4.2.4. Majority of young people die due  to external factors.................................................69 
4.2.4.1. Death due to transport accidents.................................................................................70 4.2.4.2. Death due to suicide.................................................................................................. ..71 
4.2.4.3. Death due to drugs .................................................................................................... ..72 
4.2.4.4. Death due to AIDS/HIV .............................................................................................72 4.2.5. Youth attitudes toward smoking.................................................................................73 4.2.6. Youth attitudes towards drinking................................................................................73 4.2.7. Youth attitudes towards drugs ....................................................................................75 4.3. Young people and leisure time ...................................................................................78 4.3.1. Free time decreases with age ......................................................................................78 4.3.2. Leisure time activities among 15-30 year olds ...........................................................78 4.3.3. Attending cultural events............................................................................................80 4.3.4. Attending live sports events........................................................................................80 4.3.5. Cultural visits......................................................................................................... .....80 
4.3.6. Travels and tourism ....................................................................................................8 1 
4.3.7. Culture: united in diversity .........................................................................................81 4.3.8. Culture and multiculturalism ......................................................................................82 4.3.9. Intercultural dialogue.................................................................................................. 82 
4.4. The digital generation.................................................................................................84 
EN 6   EN 4.4.1. Young people play a leading role in applying new technologies ...............................84 
4.4.2. A generational gap in ICT ..........................................................................................85 4.4.3. E-mobility.............................................................................................................. .....86 
4.4.4. E-skills ................................................................................................................ ........86 
4.4.5. Using the Internet ...................................................................................................... .90 
4.4.6. E-commerce.............................................................................................................. ..91 
5. recommendations derived from research for policymakers and youth workers.........93 5.1. Recommendations to policymakers............................................................................93 5.2. Recommendations to youth workers ..........................................................................94 
EN 7   EN INTRODUCTION 
This is the first time that the Commission is pub lishing a report on Youth in the European Union. It 
is a first effort to compile data and statistics in order to give a picture of the situation of young people in Europe.  
This report was requested by the Council of the European Union and constitutes one of the 
supporting documents of the Commission's Co mmunication for the ne w youth cooperation 
framework, entitled "An EU Strategy fo r Youth: Investing and Empowering". 
The objective of this first youth re port is twofold. First, it is to support the new youth cooperation 
framework by collecting much  of the available statistics and data on the conditi ons of young people. 
Second, any effort to address young people's chal lenges and improve their situation must be 
evidence-based.  
The report "European Research on Youth" with  results of youth-related projects funded under 
consecutive Commission resear ch framework programmes from 1996 to now, as well as a 
forthcoming Eurostat publication with data and statistics on th e situation of young people, will 
provide additional information. 
By making accessible evidence and knowledge on the situation of young people in Europe, this 
report also gives some indications for where ther e is a lack of research and data on youth and 
possible venues for future improvement.  
By elaborating this first European report on yout h, the ambition of the Commission is to contribute 
to better integrated youth policies. This dynamic is also valid at the national level where ongoing 
knowledge production can also improve conditions for developing youth policy. 
Target group covered by the report: definition of youth 
There is no clear-cut definition of youth. The pe riod of when a person is seen as young may be 
considered a transition phase. Youth has been de fined as “the passage from a dependant childhood 
to independent adulthood”. Young people are in transition between a world of rather secure and 
standard biographical development to a world of choice and/or risk where individuals have to 
choose and plan their own orient ation and social integration. 
Finding a common definition of youth is  not an easy task. Age is a us eful but insufficient indication 
to characterise the transition to  adulthood. Other qualitative informa tion also reveals how societies 
acknowledge the increasing maturity  of young people. The age limit of  child benefits, the end of 
full-time compulsory schooling, th e voting age and the minimum age for standing for elections may 
be considered as key milestones to adulthood. 
The age limit of child benefits usually ranges from  15 (in the Czech Republic and Latvia) to 18, but 
it is often prolonged when children are still in edu cation. The end of compulsory education may also 
be seen as the time when individuals are free to make their own choices. It ranges from 14 to 17 
years.  
Considering civic rights, the voting age for nationa l elections in the European Union is 18 in all 
countries except Austria (16). In Italy the legal voting age is 18 but  the Senate is elected only by 
people aged 25 and over. The age to stand for electi ons as a candidate varies from 18 to 40 across 
Member States, and may depend of th e type of election (see chapter 3). 
EN 8   EN Aside from the above-mentioned key milestones that  are mainly related to age, adulthood is also 
considered as the time when young people become fi nancially self-sufficient. The increase in the 
length of studies (especially thr ough increased participation in hi gher education ), combined with 
difficulties in getting a first job and access to affo rdable housing have increased the length of the 
transition from youth to independence.  
For these reasons this report focuses mainly on th e population aged between 15 and 29, but statistics 
are sometimes available fo r different age ranges.  
Method 
Areas covered in the report are among those consid ered to be important for the development of 
youth policy. However, more coverage been given to areas and issues wh ere useful data on the 
situation of young people in Europe has been easily accessible.  
Sources 
Chapters 1, 2 and 4 build primarily on data a nd analyses provided by Eurostat based on the 
following main surveys: 
 - European Union Labour Force Survey (EU LFS)  - European Union Survey on Inco me and Living Conditions (EU SILC) 
For chapter 3, the main sources are reports to the Commission by Member States, data from the 
European Knowledge Centre on Youth Policy (EKCYP)
1 and some Eurobarometer surveys. 
Eurobarometer surveys are not st atistical tools but opinion polls based on subjective responses, and 
are not always exhaustive.  
The European Social Survey (ESS)2 has also provided data for some parts of chapters 3 and 4. 
Content 
The aim of this report is to provide data and anal ysis on the different pathways of young people, and 
how they influence – and are th emselves influenced – by underl ying demographic, economic and 
social contexts. This regards in particular the tr ansition from education to the labour market. Other 
important elements are the analysis of young people’ s active citizenship as we ll as their well being, 
their family life, and more generall y some aspects of their lifestyle. 
Frequency 
In line with the request from the Council of the European Union, youth reports are expected to be 
produced every three years. These reports will conti nue to build on the basis of  the current report. In 
this way, a constructive dynamic should be developed:  the process of analysing data - or identifying 
                                                 
1 EKCYP has been developed jointly by the European Commission and the Council of Europe. This is a 
knowledge management system that aims at providing youth policy-makers and other interested stakeholders 
with a single entry point to retrieve informat ion on the realities of youth across Europe. 
2 The European Social Survey (ESS) is  an academically-driven social surv ey designed to chart and explain the 
interaction between Europe's changing institutions and the attitudes beliefs and behaviour patterns of its 
diverse populations. Now in its fourth  round, the survey covers over 30 nations. This survey received funding 
from the EU Research Framework Programm es. More information is available at 
www.europeansocialsurvey.org 
EN 9   EN areas where there is insufficient data - will suggest what kind of other information and analysis 
could be useful, the results of which can  be introduced in the next report.  
EN 10   EN 1. DEMOGRAPHY 
Past decades have shown a continuous increase in life expectancy in Europe. This increasingly 
affects the general organisation of life and the le ngth of the main life periods: school life, working 
life and retirement all tend to become longer with time. 
1.1. Close to 100 million young peop le live in the European Union 
Figures from 2007 indicate that some 96 million people aged between 15 and 29 reside in the 
European Union. An excess of 34 million European inhabitants are between 25 and 29 years of age, 
slightly more than the populat ions of the other two age groups (20-24 and 15-19), which are 
recorded at some 32 million and 30 million respectively. 
In terms of share of th e population, youth represents just under a fifth of th e total (19.4%), with the 
proportion of young people aged between 25 and 29 (6.9 %) slightly higher th an the share of young 
people aged 20-24 (6.5 %) and 15-19 (6 %).  
The share of youth aged between 15 and 29 in th e total population at the national level ranges 
between 22% and 24% for the Baltic States (Est onia, Latvia and Lithuania), Cyprus and Malta, 
whereas it is less than 20% (ave rage proportion at the European Un ion level), in Austria, Germany, 
Finland, Greece, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands , Sweden and Belgium, Spain and the United 
Kingdom. 
Young people (15-19, 20-24, 25-29) as a share of total population, 01.01.2007 
 
1.2. Changes in the working population 
In the near future the European Union will face two demographic challenges, namely the ageing and 
impending decline of its population. The population share of young people will drop further, while 
that of older people will increase. As a conseque nce, the characteristics of the working population 
EN 11   EN will change. Two indicators in partic ular are useful to evaluate this  trend: population of working age 
(20-59 and 60-65), and activity rates per age. 
Over the past decade, both the working populati on (aged 20-59 years) a nd the population aged 60 
years and above have been growing by 1 to 1.5 m illion people per year on average. According to 
Eurostat demographic projections, it is foreseen that from now on the population aged 60 years and 
above will be growing by 2 million people every year for the next 25 years. The growth of the 
working-age population is slowing do wn fast and will stop altogether in about 6 years; from then 
on, this segment of the population will be sh rinking by 1 to 1.5 million people each year. 
The projections of the old and young age dependency ratios3 indicate that by 2050, the population 
under 14 will account for less that one fourth of the population aged 15-64 - while the population 
aged over 65 will represent more than 50 % of the 15-64 year olds. From 2004 to 2050, the young 
age dependency ratio will remain stable while the old age dependency ratio will nearly double. 
Projection of young and old age dependency ratios, EU-25, 2004–2050 
0102030405060
2004 2010 2020 2030 2040 2050Young age depency ratio
old age dependency ratio
 
Source: Eurostat - population projection 
By 2050, the old age dependency ratio will be lower th an 50 % in just over half of the EU Member 
States, but higher than 60 % in  countries such as Bulgaria, Spain and Italy. The young age 
dependency ratio is projected to be  below 30 % in all Member States , with the highest scores (over 
27 %) in Ireland, France, Luxembourg and Sweden and the lowest (under 22 %) in Bulgaria, Germany, Spain, Italy, Au stria and Romania. 
1.3. Youth immigration and mobility 
Member States of the European Union are attrac tive to young people coming from other countries. 
They may come from neighbouring countries outsid e the Union, from former colonies of Member 
                                                
 
3 The dependency ratio is an age-population ratio of those typically not in the labour force and those typically in 
the labour force. The young-age dependency ratio is the ratio of the number of young persons at an age when 
they are generally economically inactive divided by the number of persons of working age. The old-age 
dependency ratio is the ratio of the number of elderly persons at an age when they are generally economically 
inactive divided by the number of persons of working age. 
EN 12   EN States, or from other countries outside of Europe . Mobility inside the EU  also contributes to 
changing the structure of society. Regarding international migrati on patterns, European countries 
have experienced major changes since the end of the Second World War, most notably through a 
progressive shift from emigration to immigration. This trend has gained strength, international 
migration has become a key factor in European  population growth and im migration flows have 
increased. Population ageing, including the ageing of the workforce could con tinue to function as a 
pull factor for international migration.  
The figures we refer to in the following paragraphs come from Eurostat (Eur ostat- LFS and Eurostat 
population-International Migrati on and Asylum). Measuring mi gration among young people takes 
also into account student mobility.  
Mobility of young Europeans  
Young EU nationals mostly tend to move to Be lgium, Germany, Spain, Italy, Cyprus, Austria, 
Sweden and the United Kingdom. In Luxembourg al most 40 % of young people are from other EU 
Member States, but the UK and Spain remain  the main hosting count ries for young people. 
Migration flows also reveal that  young people tend to move to ne ighbouring countries. For example, 
the main young foreign nationals residing in Sl ovenia are Germans and in the United Kingdom 
475 000 young persons were born in Ireland.  
Mobility from outside EU 
Immigration from outside the EU is influenced by diverse factors such as former colonial links, 
(Belgium, France, UK, the Netherlands, or Spain a nd Portugal), strategic ge ographical position as a 
gateway to Europe (Estonia, Spain, Greece, or Finland), fa vourable economic conditions 
(Luxembourg for example), or a combinati on of some or all of these factors. 
Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom are the count ries with the largest absolute numbers of 
young non-EU foreigners between the ages of 15 a nd 29 (1.8, 1.4 and 1.25 million respectively). In 
2007, more than 15% of young people in Spain were  non-EU citizens. This was the second highest 
proportion after that of Luxembourg, among the 18 EU  Member States for which these data are 
available. Austria and Germany follow with 13.6%  and 12.4% respectively. The lowest proportions 
are found in three of the most  recent EU Member States (P oland, Romania and Slovakia). 
Spain is the main destination of  young immigrants from the Americ an continent and from Africa, 
while most young immigrants from Asia tend to go to the United Kingdom. Many young immigrants in the Netherlands were born in As ia, followed by America, Africa and Turkey. The 
largest group of third-country ci tizens living in Austria, Germany, Denmark and the Netherlands are 
from Turkey, and the majority of the third-country  foreigners in France a nd Spain have Moroccan 
citizenship. In France, geographic and cultural proximities also ease mobility. Young people from 
Iceland and Norway tend to emigrate to Sweden or Denmark, while youngsters from Croatia and the 
Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia go firstly to Slovenia. 
EN 13   EN KEY FIGURES RELATING TO DEMOGRAPHY 
• Currently 96 Million young people ag ed 15-29 in the European Union  
• Young people aged 15-29 constitute 19.4 % of the total population within the EU 
• Projected share of young people in 2 050: 15.3 % of the to tal population  
EN 14   EN 2. TRANSITION  FROM  EDUCATION  TO EMPLOYMENT 
2.1. Education 
In Europe, the extension of schooling is a long- term phenomenon. The rapid economic growth between 
1950 and 1975 increased the demand for qualified labour through increased levels of education. More 
recently, higher unemployment rates and increasing world-wide competition have stressed the need to improve the overall level of education of the wo rking force in Europe. The knowledge-based economy 
that already characterises many European countries requires people to be able to renew their skills 
continuously through lifelong learni ng so as to secure employment  over time, and participate and 
integrate fully in a changing society. 
USEFUL CONCEPTS AND DEFINITIONS 
School expectancy:  School expectancy is an estimate of the number of years a typical 5-year-old child 
can expect to be enrolled in the education system during his or her lifetime if current enrolment patterns 
remain unchanged. It is calculated by adding the ne t educational enrolment percentages for each single 
year of age and age band. The net enrolment rate s are calculated by dividi ng the number of students 
(ISCED 0 to 6) of a particular age or age group by th e number of persons in th e population in the same 
age or age band.  
Source: The UNESCO/OECD/EUROSTAT (UOE) database on education statistics  
Early school leavers  refer to persons aged 18 to 24 in the following two conditions: the highest level of 
education or training attained is  ISCED 0, 1, 2 or 3c short and res pondents declared not  having received 
any education or training in th e four weeks preceding the survey 
Formal Education  is defined as “…education provided in the system of schools, colleges, universities 
and other formal educational inst itutions that normally constitutes a continuous “ladder” of full-time 
education for children and young people, generally beginni ng at age of five to seven and continuing up to 
20 or 25 years old. In some countri es, the upper parts of this “ladder”  are organised programmes of joint 
part-time employment and part-tim e participation in the regular sc hool and university system: such 
programmes have come to be known as the “dual sy stem” or equivalent terms in these countries.” 
Non-formal Education  is defined as “any organised and sust ained educational activities that do not 
correspond exactly to the above definition of formal education. Non-formal edu cation may therefore take 
place both within and outside educa tional institutions, and cater to pe rsons of all ages. Depending on 
country contexts, it may cover ed ucational programmes to impart adul t literacy, basic education for out 
of school children, life-skills, work-skills, and genera l culture. Non-formal e ducation programmes do not 
necessarily follow the “ladder” system , and may have a differing duration.” 
Informal Learning is defined as “…intentional, but it is less organised and less structured ….and may 
include for example learning events (a ctivities) that occur in the famil y, in the work place, and in the 
daily life of every person, on a self-directed, family-directed or  socially directed basis”.  
Source: Eurostat - Classification of learning activities -Manual 
The International Standard Classi fication of Education (ISCED)  is an instrument suitable for 
assembling, compiling and presenting comparable indicators and statistics of education both within 
individual countries and internationa lly. It presents standard concepts, definitions and classifications and 
covers all organized and sustaine d learning opportunities fo r children, youth and ad ults including those 
EN 15   EN with special needs education, irresp ective of the institution or entity providing them or the form in which 
they are delivered. 
LEVEL 0 – Pre-primary education: Programmes at level 0, (pre-primary) defined as the initial stage of 
organized instruction are designed primarily to introduce very young children to a school-type 
environment, i.e. to provide a bridge betw een the home and a school-based atmosphere.  
LEVEL 1 – Primary education or fi rst stage of basic education:  Programmes at level 1 are normally 
designed on a unit or project basis to give studen ts a sound basic education in reading, writing and 
mathematics along with an elementary understanding of other subjects such  as history, geography, 
natural science, social science, ar t and music (and sometimes religion).  
LEVEL 2 – Lower secondary or second stage of basic education: The contents of education at this 
stage are typically designed to complete the provisi on of basic education which began at ISCED level 1. 
In many, if not most countries, th e educational aim is to lay th e foundation for lifelong learning and 
human development on which countries may expand, sy stematically, further educational opportunities. 
The end of this level often coincides with th e end of compulsory education where it exists. 
LEVEL 3 – (Upper) secondary education:  This level of education typically begins at the end of full-
time compulsory education for thos e countries that have a system of compulsory education. More 
specialization may be observed at this level than at  ISCED level 2 and often t eachers need to be more 
qualified or specialized than for ISCED level 2. The entran ce age to this level is typically 15 or 16 years.  
LEVEL 4 – Post-secondary non-tertiary education: ISCED 4 programmes can, depending on their 
content, not to be regard ed as tertiary programmes. They are of ten not significantly more advanced than 
programmes at ISCED 3 but they se rve to broaden the knowledge of participants who have already 
completed a programme at level 3. Typical examples  are programmes designed to prepare students for 
studies at level 5 who, although ha ving completed ISCED level 3, did not follow a curriculum which 
would allow entry to level 5, i.e. pre-degree foun dation courses or short vocational programmes.  
LEVEL 5 – First stage of tertiary education (n ot leading directly to an advanced research 
qualification):  This level consists of tertiary programmes having an educational co ntent more advanced 
than those offered at levels 3 and 4. There is a distinction between 5A: the programmes which are 
theoretically based/research prep aratory (history, philosophy, mathematics, etc.) or giving access to 
professions with high skills requirements (e.g. medici ne, dentistry, architecture, etc.), and 5B: those 
programmes which are practical/tech nical/occupationally specific.  
LEVEL 6 – Second stage of tertiary education (l eading to an advanced research qualification):  This 
level is reserved for tertiary programmes which lead to the award of an advan ced research qualification. 
The programmes are therefore devoted to advanced st udy and original research  and are not based on 
course-work only. 
The term Early-Stage Researcher  refers to researchers in the first four years (full-time equivalent) of 
their research activity, including th e period of research training. 
According to the ISCED classification, general and vocational educations have the following 
definitions: 
General education : Education which is mainly designed to l ead participants to a deeper understanding 
of a subject or group of subjects, es pecially, but not necessarily, with a view to preparing participants for 
further (additional) education at the same or a higher level. Successf ul completion of these programmes 
may or may not provide the participan ts with a labour-market relevant qualification at this level. These 
programmes are typically school-based. 
EN 16   EN Vocational or technical education : Education which is mainly designed to lead participants to acquire 
the practical skills, know-how and understanding necessa ry for employment in a particular occupation or 
trade or class of occupations or  trades. Successful completion of such programmes lead to a labour-
market relevant vocational qualificat ion recognised by the co mpetent authorities in the country in which 
it is obtained (e.g. Ministry of Educ ation, employers’ associations, etc.). 
Source: International Standard Class ification of Education ISCED 1997 , United Nations Educational, 
Scientific and Cultural Organization 
2.1.1.  Longer schooling for children  
As a result of life expectancy, the number of y ears that a young person will spend within the formal 
education system is higher than before (it is t oday on average 17 years). Fo r instance, in Denmark, 
Estonia, Finland, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Sweden and Poland, this  means that children aged 5 can 
expect to spend more than one fourth of th eir remaining lifetime at school and university. 
School expectancy depends on various factors that structure each educational system: the length of 
compulsory schooling, the access and patterns of pre- primary education, the different types of upper 
secondary education (vocational or general) and the way pupils are oriented towards them, the type of 
admission and the variety of choi ces in tertiary education. Beyond compulsory education, school 
expectancy is also affected, among other factors,  by the attitudes of parents who may consider the 
investment in their children's education a security en suring status, a decent futu re income and protection 
against unemployment. 
In addition to investing in s econdary education, however, the de velopment of lifelong learning 
opportunities reinforces the need to consider also the time spent in non-formal education and informal 
learning during the entire life in or der to evaluate the total time devot ed to education in a lifetime. 
2.1.2.  Choosing paths after compulsory schooling 
In most European countries, compulsory schooling ends between the ages 14 and 17, which corresponds 
to the end of lower secondary education. Nowadays it  is by no means exceptional to remain in education 
after the end of compulsory school ing. From this age, young Europeans may choose at any time whether 
to continue their education or to become economi cally active. Most young pe ople choose to continue 
their studies beyond compulsory ed ucation, but some choose alternative ways. However, many young 
people do not take a clear-cut decision on whether to pursue education or employ ment. Instead, they opt 
for a transitional phase during which they try to conciliate studies and work.  
In most European countries, over 80 % of the population remains at school  at least one year after the end 
of compulsory education. Attendance rates tend to d ecline more in the second year after the end of 
compulsory education, but remain above 70 % in mo st countries. The exceptions are Germany and the 
United Kingdom, where less than 50 % of young pe ople remain in education two years following 
compulsory education. 
Young women remain in education longer than their male counterparts. In mo st countries, female 
attendance rates two years after th e end of compulsory education are higher than for their male 
counterparts. 
At the age of 19, more than 60 % of young Europeans ar e still in formal education, although at different 
levels due to the differences in the education syst ems and their own academic progression. In Bulgaria, 
Luxembourg, Austria, Romania, Sweden, and the Un ited Kingdom, more than half of young people aged 
19 have are no longer in formal e ducation. In these countries, the transition to the labour market has 
already started for a majority of young people. In  the Czech Republic, Germany, Ireland, Hungary and 
EN 17   EN Austria, the share of 19-year-olds attending post s econdary vocational education (which is more work 
oriented) reach around 10 %. In Denmark, Germany, Luxembourg and the Netherlands more than 40 % 
of the 19 years old population is still in upper secondary education. 
2.1.3.  Educational orientation and early transition to work 
Further participation in higher education depends on th e educational orientation (general or vocational) 
of upper secondary education.  At EU level, a little mo re than half of the st udents in uppe r secondary 
education attend vocational-or iented programmes. The percentage of students that prepare themselves to 
enter the labour market at this level is especially  high (more than 70 %) in the Czech Republic, Austria, 
and Slovakia. To a lesser extent, most of students in upper secondary  choose vocational orientation in 
Belgium, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherla nd, Romania, Slovenia, and Finland. At the opposite, 
in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Ireland, Greece, Hunga ry, and Portugal, more than 60 % of students follow 
general programmes in a view to continue further education. In Cyprus, more than 80 % of students are 
in this situation.  
Young men and women who graduate from vocationa l programmes in upper secondary education are 
mainly prepared to work in business and industry. At  European level, 62 % of graduates of vocational 
programmes at this level studied e ither “social science, business and law” or “engineer ing, manufacturing 
and construction” programmes. Grad uates in “health and welfare” as  well “services” come next.  
2.1.4.  Gender differences in upper secondary education 
In 2006, the number of boys attending uppe r secondary education is not very different from the one of 
girls. Most EU Member States show  a balanced distribution and at Euro pean level, there are 98 girls for 
every 100 boys. However, in some countries, the number of women to every hundred men is more 
unbalanced. This is the case in Germany (89 women to every 100 men), Malta (88) Austria (89) and 
Poland (90). Conversely, in Denmark, Finland, Swed en, Estonia, Latvia, Li thuania, Ireland, Spain, 
Luxembourg, Portugal and the United Kingdom, wo men are more numerous in upper secondary 
education.  
Despite the fact that the gender ga p in upper secondary education is lo w in most of the countries, strong 
differences across sexes emerge when  considering attendance by educati onal orientation. In all European 
countries, girls outnumber boys in general upper seconda ry education meaning that  they mainly prepare 
for further education whereas boys are more focused in  preparing access to the labour market. This is 
illustrated by the fact that within EU Member Stat es, nearly 54 % of girls in upper secondary education 
are attending general programmes whereas only 43 % of boys do s o. The reverse is true when 
considering vocational programmes, except in Irel and and the United Kingdom where girls are more 
numerous than boys independent of  programme orientation. In Bulg aria, Denmark, Malta and Poland, a 
majority of women are attending th e general secondary educational pr ogramme whereas the majority of 
men are attending vocational programmes. In Bulgar ia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Greece, Cyprus, 
Hungary, Malta, and Poland there are less than 70 gi rls for every 100 boys in  vocational programmes. 
2.1.5.  More students in the knowledge triangle 
Tertiary education is the final st age of formal or regular educati on. Education, research and innovation 
(also known as the knowledge triangle) play a key role  in facing the challenges of globalisation and the 
development of knowledge society. When creating new knowledge and in cluding it in the education of 
students, the basis is set up for fu rther innovation, creativity and cont ribution to future prosperity.  
In 2006, there were almost 19 million tertiary student s in the European Union. The number of tertiary 
students has increased by 25 % between 1998 and 2006. There are about 3 million more students in 
higher education and 1 million more graduates per year than in 2000. At EU level, 11.5 % of the 
EN 18   EN population aged between 18 and 39 a ttend tertiary educa tion. Attendance rates va ry across countries, 
however: more than half of the countries for which da ta is available show atte ndance rates higher than 
10 %. In Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania,  Ireland, Greece, France, Poland and Finland, the participation rate is 
higher than 15 %.  
One probable reason why participat ion rates are lower in Cyprus, Ma lta, and Luxembourg may be that 
many young people are studying abroad.  
Number of tertiary students per country (1000), 2006  
0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500BEBGCZDKDEEEIEELESFRITCYLVLTLUHUMTNLATPLPTROSISKFISE UK
 
Source: Eurostat 
2.1.6.  An emerging gender gap in tertiary studies 
The past decade (1998-2006) has witnessed an increase in the gender gap in higher education. In 1998, 
there were nearly 112 women to every 100 men in hi gher education. This ratio increased to 123 in 2006. 
These numbers show that the 'femin isation' of tertiary education is stronger th an in upper secondary 
education. This is probably linked to the fact that the majority of wo men attend general programmes that 
prepare them for further educa tion at tertiary level rather than vocational programmes.  
2.1.7.  Older students  
Most full time students are economica lly inactive and thus rely (partly  or fully) on the financial support 
from their parents and/or from public support scheme s. Thus, the distribution by age of full time students 
can provide some indication as to the age at which young people ar e probably not yet economically 
active. There is a strong diversity across Europe. Th is diversity may be expl ained by several factors: 
Different education systems have diffe rent starting age of tertiary educ ation (due to various length of 
secondary education). They also differ on the length of tertiary education programmes and the types of 
financial support students can get fro m public authorities. The obligation to do military se rvice, as well 
as public policies aiming to encourage lifelong learning at tertiary level, also incr eases the average age of 
a student of higher education. Finall y, the levels of partic ipation in programmes wh ich lead to advanced 
EN 19   EN research degrees also have an impact on the age of the student population. Am ong EU Member States, 
half of the students are older than 22. 
Across Europe, the median age4 of tertiary students ranges from 20.5 in Greece to near 26 in Denmark, 
Finland, Sweden, Germany and Austria: in these c ountries half of the stude nts are older than 23. 
Moreover, in the three Nordic countries (Denmark, Fi nland, Sweden) as well as in Latvia and the United 
Kingdom, 15 % of full time students are older than 35. The same countries also tend to show the highest 
diversity in terms of ag e of the student population. 
Most of the European count ries have witnessed an ageing of the oldest population of full time students 
between 1998 and 2006: old students tend to become older. In 1998, 15 % of European full time students 
were older than 29. In 2006, 15 % of students were older than 30. The thr ee Baltic States have registered 
a dramatic increase in the average age of the oldest st udents over the same period: the average age of the 
15 % oldest students increased by 7 years in Lithuani a and by nearly 10 in La tvia. Significant but yet 
lower increases are also registered in Ireland, Greece, Hungary and Malta, where the average age increased by more than 5 years. The reverse applie s in Germany, Austria, and Poland, where the average 
age of the 15 % oldest st udents has actually decreased. 
2.1.8.  Learning foreign languages 
Multilingualism (i.e. the ab ility to speak and use several language s) has become a key issue in the 
development of the European Union. The Eu ropean Commission’s Communication on “A New 
Framework Strategy for Multilingualism”  states that the many mother tongues are a “a source of wealth 
and a bridge to greater solidarity and mutual understanding”, but also that “the ability to understand and 
communicate in more than one langua ge is a desirable life-skill for a ll European citizens. It enables 
people to take advantage of the fr eedom to work or study in anothe r Member State". Learning languages 
is thus a “key for the future”. It  should be given to all pupils in general, including in vocational upper 
secondary education. 
At the EU level, learning languages at school is a reality for most pupils in upper secondary education 
regardless of educational orientation: less than 10 % of pupils do not learn any foreig n languages. Pupils 
in prevocational and vocational programmes at upper secondary level tend to learn less foreign languages 
than their counterparts in  general programmes. The majority (64 %) of pupils in vocational programmes 
learn one language and a little more  than 25 % learn two. However in Es tonia, for instan ce, more than 
80 % of students in vocational programmes learn tw o foreign languages. In most countries for which data 
are available, all or nearly all pupils in general programmes at upper secondary education learn at least 
one foreign language. The exceptions are Portugal and the United King dom, where 40 % or more pupils 
do not learn any foreign language. 
2.1.9.  Increased mobility, but not for everyone 
A high level expert forum on mobility, establishe d by the European Commission, has stated that 
“learning mobility should become a natural feature of being European and an opportunity provided to all 
young people in Europe”. Learning mobility is important  for strengthening Europe's competitiveness, for 
creating a knowledge-intensive society and for deepening citizenship within young generations. 
Mobility concerns various young populat ions: pupils and students in sec ondary and tertiary education, 
trainees, apprentices, volunteers and pa rticipants in professional traini ng in or outside Europe. However, 
statistical information on mobility in Europe is onl y partially harmonised and exists most often only on 
tertiary education. Moreover, data on  mobility based on the citizenship cr iterion within the field of higher 
                                                
 
4 Median  is the middle value of a sample 
EN 20   EN education is not fully comparable across countries since national legislation governing the acquisition of 
citizenship differs across Europe.  
Six EU countries (Austria, Belgiu m, Cyprus, France, Germany and Un ited Kingdom) have more than  
10 % foreign students in thei r total student population. Three of these countries, Cyprus, Austria, and the 
United Kingdom, have a pr oportion higher than 15 %. 
Various European Union programmes support learni ng mobility across Europe. The Youth in Action 
Programme, successor of the YOUTH programme, supports  EU’s mobility and non-formal education of 
young people, particularly young people with fewer opportunities: each year 100 000 young people are 
involved in more than 6 000 projects. Si nce 1988, 1.5 millions young people and youth workers 
participated in the programme. In the formal edu cation field, Erasmus has had a growing popularity over 
the years, supporting 3244 students in its first year  (the academic year 1987/88) and nearly 160 000 
students in 2006/07. Overall, the Eras mus programme has supported more than 2 millions students so far. 
EUROPEAN COMMISSION PROGRAMMES  
IN THE FIELD OF LIFELONG LEARNING AND YOUTH 
Comenius : The Comenius programme focuses on the firs t phase of education, from pre-school and 
primary to secondary schools. It is relevant for all members of  the education community: pupils, 
teachers, local authorities, pare nts’ associations, non-government  organisations, teacher training 
institutes, universities and all other educational staff. Comenius seeks to develop knowledge and 
understanding among young people and educational staff of  the diversity of European cultures, languages 
and values. It helps young people acquire the basic life skills and competences necessary for their 
personal development, for future employment and for active citizenship.  
Leonardo : The Leonardo da Vinci programme links polic y to practice in the field of vocational 
education and training (VET). Projects range from thos e giving individuals the chance to improve their 
competences, knowledge and skills through a period abroad, to Eu rope-wide co-operation between 
training organisations. The progra mme funds a wide range of acti ons, notably cross-border mobility 
initiatives; co-operation projects to  develop and spread innovation; an d thematic networks. The potential 
beneficiaries are similarly wide – from trainees in initia l vocational training, to people already in the 
labour market, as well as VET profes sionals and private or public orga nisations active in this field. 
Erasmus : The Erasmus programme aims at enhancing the quality and reinforcing the European 
dimension of higher education as well as at increasing student and staff mobility. It enriches not only the 
students’ lives in the academic field but also in th e acquisition of intercultural skills and self-reliance. 
Staff exchanges also have beneficial effects bot h on the persons concerned and on the institutions 
involved. Erasmus Mundus is the globally ope n counterpart of the Erasmus programme. 
Youth in action: The Youth in Action programme aims at inspiring a sense of active citizenship, 
solidarity and tolerance among young Europeans, prom oting the employability, and involving them in 
shaping the Union's future. It promotes mobility within and beyond the EU borders, non-formal learning 
and intercultural dialogue and en courages the inclusion of all young people, regardless of their 
educational, social and cultural background. It supports a large variet y of activities of young people and 
youth workers through five Actions.  
Source: DG Education and Culture  
EN 21   EN 2.1.10.  The level of education: a comparison between generations 
The percentage of the population which has comple ted higher education is  increasing. 29 % of young 
Europeans aged between 25 and 29 have completed higher education, agains t 18 % of the population 
aged between 55 and 59. The same trend exists for sec ondary education: slightly more that 50 % of the 
25-29 age group has finished secondary educa tion compared to 42 % of the 55-59 age group. 
However, a few countries experience that the pr oportion of people aged between 25 and 29 having 
completed at least upper secondary education is lower than the one  for the 35-39 and 45-49 age groups. 
This is the case in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Romania. 
Population by age group (25-29, 55-59) sex and highest level of education completed 
 
 
Almost all member states show an  increase in the proportion of pe ople having completed at least upper 
secondary education through generations. The only ex ceptions are Germany, the Baltic States, Romania 
and Sweden.  
2.1.11.  Early school leavers 
One out of seven young persons aged 18 to 24 in the EU leaves the educa tion system with no more than 
lower secondary education and participates in no form  of education and traini ng (early school leaver). 
There has been a continuous improvement in recent year s, but progress will need to speed up in order to 
reach the EU benchmark set for 2010. At the European level, the percentage of early school leavers has 
continuously decreased over the 2000-2007 pe riod. It is now standing at 14.8 %.  
Europe tends to show a north/south di vide on this issue. Some of the southern countries record more than 
30 % of early school leavers (Spain, Malta, and Portugal) whereas other countries (principally from north 
Europe) register much lower numbers. In all countri es except Bulgaria, the pe rcentage of early school 
leavers is higher for male than for female. Seven Member States – the Czech Republic, Lithuania, Poland, Slovenia, Slovakia, Finland and Sweden – have  shares of less than 10 %. Among these countries, 
Poland, the Czech Republic and Finland are still progr essing. Other countries, like Malta and Portugal, 
have considerably decreased their initially ve ry high percentages of  early school leavers. 
EN 22   EN Percentage of early school leavers by country, 2007 
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40EU 27BelgiumBulgariaCzech RepublicDenmarkGermanyEstoniaIrelandGreece SpainFranceItalyCyprusLatviaLithuaniaLuxembourgHungaryMaltaNetherlandsAustriaPolandPortugalRomaniaSloveniaSlovakiaFinlandSwedenUnited Kingdom
 
Source: Eurostat (Labour Force Survey) 
RESEARCH FINDINGS OF THE UP2YOUTH PROJECT: 
YOUTH - ACTOR OF SOCIAL CHANGE5 
Young migrants' transitions from education to work 
The UP2YOUTH project centres around three areas of social  change with regard to youth and its 
transition to adulthood: young parenthood;  social participation; and the transitions of young people with 
an ethnic minority or migrant background. UP2Youth analys es to what extent social change results from 
young people’s agency and what they n eed to act in ways which contribu te both to social integration and 
to subjectively meaningful biographies. 
Learning is a key to an agency perspective in  understanding changing pathways to adulthood and 
citizenship. In the individualisat ion of transitions to adulthood learning is relevant in a double 
perspective: 
– young people are expected to acquire knowledge and skills in formal trajectories, but 
– individual learning increasi ngly takes place in non-formal and informal settings. 
                                                 
5 The UP2Youth project was funded under the 6th framework programme of  the European Union (Citizens and 
governance programme) and involved research partners from 15 countries (Germany, Denmark, France, Italy, 
Bulgaria, Slovenia, Portugal, Spain, Finland, Romania, Austria, Slovakia and Irelan d), running from May 2006 - 
April 2009 – Info: http://www.up2youth.org/. 
EN 23   EN Today formal learning is most necessary but not sufficient to help young people’s social and labour 
market integration. Approaches of non-formal learning are concerned wi th compensating a lack of formal 
learning – especially with regard to youth – and to allow for reconciliation between adult expectations 
and youth cultural forms of praxis. 
The development of alternative lear ning settings holds considerable re sources to compensate for missing 
formal certificates. This is es pecially the case for young people w ith learning problems in formal 
education, as is often the case for young people with an ethnic minority or mi grant background, due to 
linguistic and cultural cha llenges or interrupted e ducational trajectories. 
While belonging to an ethnic minority may be consider ed a biographical and social  resource in globalised 
post-modern life (governed by flexibility and cultural di versity), it may also bring them at the edge of 
society, marginalized by the larger society a nd separated by cultural a nd religious life styles. 
Thus a significant proportion of young people with mi gration background is involved in a “processes of 
ethnic differentiation” reinforced by discrimination, restricted educ ational achievements and a low 
socioeconomic status.  
Especially male youngsters from mi grant and ethnic minority communiti es are regarded as developing 
informal peer cultures, being lived as social spaces of soci al participation and soci alization on citizenship 
practices, which often conf lict with school cultures. 
Moreover, the improvements in education and voca tional training have led to a deficit of low/ 
unqualified labour force in some sectors and a stru ctural dependency on unskilled, immigrant labour 
force in the labour market. The immigrants’ coping st rategies respond to these labour markets’ demands, 
which have in most cases a de-motivating effect on their career aspirations a nd educational improvement 
plans. 
Comparative research on the soci al integration of young people from  an ethnic minority or migrant 
background found rather weak links of successful integration processes to  integration policies. Most of 
the success in labour market transitions is attribut able to the general economic, education and social 
policies that are framing labour market transitions. 
Social integration appears to be a matter of atta chment and belonging pre dominantly to the local 
surroundings and a daily life. Therefore integration processes might best  be carried out in  local or smaller 
contexts, in which common interest and activ ities among local inhabitants can be found.  
2.1.12.  Parents' education and academic success 
The chances young people have to become highly qualif ied are often influenced by their socio-economic 
background. Evaluating the social  background of people is comple x and usually approximated by 
different variables.  
However, in all EU Member States for which data is  available, the majority of people aged 25-34 with 
parents who have at most lower secondary education have either completed the same level (lower 
secondary) or at most uppe r secondary education.  
Conversely, young people aged 25- 34 whose parents have a tertiary  education, have a much higher 
chance of completing a tertiary education themselv es. They are also less at risk of getting only a 
secondary education than those who have parents w ith only a secondary education. In more than two 
thirds of EU Member States for which there is data  available, more than half of all young people aged 
25-34 who have parents with tertiary  education have themselves comple ted education at the same level. 
In most countries, less than 5 % had taken only a lower secondary education. 
EN 24   EN Level of education for people ( 25-34) whose parents have higher 
(tertiary) education, 2005  
0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%100%
BE CZ DK DE EE ES FR IE GR IT CY LV LT LU HU MT NL A T PL PT SI SK FI SE UK IS NO
Low Medium High  
2.1.13.  Public financial support in accessing higher education 
In all European countries, access to higher education is facilitated by public financial support schemes 
dedicated to students and th eir parents. These schemes may have di fferent purposes (for instance to cover 
the costs of living, to pay administ rative fees and/or contribute to tuition costs) and take several forms 
(e.g. loans or combination of grants and loans). The impact of these financing schemes on the social and 
economic situation of students is di fficult to assess, but re cent data suggests that students in tertiary 
education still rely mainly on parents and family contributions. 
2.1.14.  Youth participation in non-formal education 
Among EU Member States, the averag e participation rates in non-formal  education and training is below 
10 % among all age groups (15-24, 25-29 and 30-54). Ho wever, Denmark, Spain, Austria, Sweden and 
the United Kingdom all have a higher participation in non-formal educa tion activities than the average. 
Participation rates are especially high in Denmar k and the United Kingdom, where it is around 20 % for 
all age groups. 
Participation rates show low differences across age groups in a majority of countries, but in Spain, 
Greece, Cyprus, Sweden and the United Kingdom, younger people participate more in non-formal 
education activities than their elders. 
When considering the level of educ ation of young adults who have take n part in non-formal education 
activities, participation rates are more diverse. In  all countries except Greece,  Cyprus and Sweden, young 
people with a higher level of educa tion participate to a larger extent  in non-formal e ducation activities 
than their peers with a lower level of education. 
This pattern is even more pronounced when cons idering participation in non-formal education of 
employed people of the same age group. In all Europ ean countries, young employed people with a higher 
education participate more in non-formal education than other young people.  
A majority of young employed people w ho attended non-formal education did so in relation to their job. 
This is especially true for people with at least u pper secondary education. However, in Estonia, France, 
Luxembourg, Hungary, the Netherlands, Austria a nd Romania, young employed people with at most 
upper secondary education are proportionally more numerous in attending jo b-related non-formal 
education than those having tertiary education. 
EN 25   EN One dimension of non-formal education that may not be  completely covered by the statistics referred to 
above is activities carried out by non-governmental volunteer organisations  and/or within the context of 
youth work. Such activities often ta rget young people in particular and are typically carried out during 
young people's leisure time. Non-formal education act ivities conducted by profe ssional youth workers 
and non-governmental youth organisations are becomi ng increasingly recognised as an important 
element of lifelong learning. 
KEY FIGURES RELATING TO EDUCATION 
• There are about 3 million more students in higher education and 1 million more graduates per year 
today than in 2000. The number of stude nts increased by 25% between 1998 and 2006. 
• There are 19 million students in higher education in  the European Union; this constitutes 11.5 % of 
the population between 18 and 39. 
• There are 23 % more women th an men in higher education. 
• Nearly 80 % of young people between 25 and 29 have completed upper secondary education. 
• Still, one fifth of children do not have basic standards of literacy and numeracy.  
• 6 million young people, 1 in 7 of 18-24 years old, achieve only compulsory education or less. 
• 11.5 % of the EU population aged 18- 39 attends tertiary education.  
• At the European level, the perc entage of early school  leavers has continuous ly decreased over the 
2000-2007 period but still amounts to 14.8 %. 
• The number of years in the formal education system is on average 17 years. 
• At age 19, more than 60 % of young Europeans are still in formal education. 
• More than half of all students in upper s econdary education attend vocational programmes. 
• Girls prepare for higher education while boys pr epare for employment: 54  % of girls in upper 
secondary education attend general programmes, whereas 57 % of boys attend more employment-
oriented vocational programmes. 
• 15 % of students in the European Union are older than 30 years old. 
• However, 10 % of pupils do not lear n any foreign language in school. 
• More than 50 % of young Eur opeans between 25 and 29 have co mpleted upper education and 29 % 
higher education. 
• Less than one third of young pe ople aged 25-34 who have a di sadvantaged socio-economic 
background complete higher education. 
EN 26   EN 2.2. From school to work 
The transition from education to employment is an important pro cess for young people. The transition 
process may vary significantly between different countri es and different national systems in terms of the 
length and the nature of the transition process, le vel and persistence of youth unemployment, and types 
of jobs and contracts obtained by young people. 
The reference population analysed in this chap ter is usually young people aged 15-29. Whenever 
possible, this is further divided in to two age categories, 15-24 and 25-29, in order to take into account the 
diversity of young people’s s ituation. The majority of the younger ag e cohort is still in education, while 
the older is supposed to already have  a foothold in th e labour market.  
EUROPEAN UNION LABOUR FORCE SURVEY (EU LFS) 
The main data source in this section is the Europe an Union Labour Force Survey (EU LFS). The EU LFS 
is a quarterly large sample survey  covering the popul ation in private households in the EU, EFTA (except 
Liechtenstein) and Candidate Countrie s. It provides annual and quarter ly results on labour participation 
of people aged 15 and over as well as persons outside the labour force.  
The EU LFS sample size amounts approximately to 1.5 million individuals each quarter. The quarterly 
sampling rates vary between 0.2 and 3.3 % in each country. This makes the LFS one of the largest 
household surveys in Europe. 
The concepts and definitions used  in the survey are based on t hose of the Inte rnational Labour 
Organisation (ILO). In conseque nce, results from the EU LFS count among the most comparable 
international labour market statistics. 
Despite the fact that today’s young pe ople are smaller in number and better educated than their previous 
generation, difficulties remain in entering the labour market. Many of those who have already gained 
employment often hold unstable jobs. There are several reasons for this, such as the mismatch between 
skills acquired in education and training and labour market requirements, as well as general labour 
market conditions. In financiall y difficult times, companies will al so downsize their recruitment 
programmes, in addition to the fact that there will be more qualified e xperts available on the job market. 
2.2.1.  Activity rates 
As chapter 2.1 shows, most young people remain in education at least until the ages 14-17 which 
correspond to the end of full-time compulsory school. Fu rthermore, a majority of  19 year-olds, who are 
beyond the compulsory school age, are still in formal education.  
USEFUL CONCEPTS AND DEFINITIONS 
The economically active population  (labour force) comprises em ployed and unemployed persons.  
Employed persons  are persons aged 15 and over who during th e reference week performed work, even 
for just one hour, for pay, profit or family gain or we re not at work but had a job or business from which 
they were temporarily absent because of, e.g., illne ss, holidays, industrial dispute or training. This can 
also include students when they are also employed.  
Unemployed persons  are persons aged 15-74 who were without  work during the reference week, were 
currently available for work and were either actively seeking work in the past four weeks or had already 
found a job to start within the next three months.  
EN 27   EN Inactive persons  are those who neither classified as employe d nor as unemployed be cause they are still 
for instance in the education system.  
Activity rates  represent active persons as a percen tage of same age total population.  
Inactivity rates  represent inactive persons as a per centage of same age total population.   
Source: International Labour Office / Labour Force Survey 
The first step towards the labour market is to be come economically active (employed or unemployed – 
actively searching for a job). However, young people’s d ecision to pursue education or not is not so clear 
cut. Aspects to take into account include motivation to continue studying, fina ncial means, the cultural 
context, socio-economic background and the ge neral situation of the labour market.  
Activity rates among young people aged 15-29, 2007 
0 1 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 0EU 27BelgiumBulgariaCzech RepublicDenmarkGermanyEstoniaIrelandGreece SpainFranceItalyCyprusLatviaLithuaniaLuxembourgHungaryMaltaNetherlandsAustriaPolandPortugalRomaniaSloveniaSlovakiaFinlandSwedenUnited Kingdom
 
Source: Eurostat (Labour Force Survey) 
In 2007, 57.5 % of young Europeans aged 15-29 were cate gorised as economically active. This was a 
drop by one per cent from 2000. With regard to this age group, Member States can be separated into three categories: those having activit y rates below 50 % (Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Italy, Lithuania, 
Luxembourg, Hungary, and Romania), those who displa yed activity rates of more than 70 % (Denmark 
and the Netherlands) and finally those having activity rates between 50 % and 70 % (remaining 
countries). With 44 % of young people categorised as econom ically active in 2007,  Lithuania recorded 
the largest drop in activity level from 2000 (minus 10.5 %) while Sweden register ed the highest increase 
(7.9 %) going from 55 % to 63 %.  
Activity levels vary according to ge nder. In most Member States, mo re than half of young men aged 15-
29 were economically active. There is no such main  trend for young women, where activity rates varied 
between 70 % (Denmark and the Netherlands) and 39 % (Hungary). Activity rates al so vary according to 
the level of education with the mo st educated young people displaying ac tivity rates of mo re than 75 %. 
EN 28   EN Furthermore, education seems to lessen the gender imbalance and to ease young people entry into the 
labour market. 
2.2.2.  Who are the young economically inactive people? 
At the EU level, more than 65 % of young people with at most lower secondary education are 
economically inactive; they are on ly 16 % among high educated ones. 
Among young inactive people two categories can be dis tinguished: those who do not want to work and 
those who would like to work but do not look for a j ob due to specific reasons: own illness or disability, 
education or training, family responsibilities. 
On average around 80 % of young inactive people aged 15-29 do not seek employment, many of them 
still being in the formal education system. 
At the EU level, 65 % of young in active people aged 15-24 do not seek an employment because of 
education or training (at Member State level, the percentages reached a minimum of 76.8 % for Sweden 
and a maximum of 97 % for Luxembourg). This is not  surprising as the majority of young people aged 
15-24 are still in education.  
More than 60 % of the young inactive people not seeking employment are women. In addition, inactive 
young people not looking for a job are more widespr ead among the youngest age class having only lower 
secondary education. This proportion decreases with the level of education until reaching a one digit 
percentage for those having at tained the tertiary level. 
2.2.3.  Off the beaten paths: away from education and activity 
Since inactivity is partly accoun ted for by growing share of young peopl e who tend to stay  in education 
beyond the age of compulsory schoo ling, the following indicators consider  all those who are, voluntary 
or involuntary, Neither in Education. Employment nor Training (NEET) allowing to better estimate 
young people most at risk on the labour market. This  group of either unemploye d or inactive youth and 
not following any education may face difficulties to  find work or may drop out of the labour force 
altogether because of being discouraged to work or  for other unspecified re asons (as opposed to those 
who are inactive because of family commitment s, military service, travel or leisure). 
At the European level, more than one third of  young people aged 15-24 were NEET. The EU average 
sometimes hides big differences between the Member States. Indeed, this share reached more than 50 % 
for Bulgaria and Hungary and around 20 % in Denmark and the Netherlands.  
By the age of 25 the share of youn g people in NEET is lower compared  to the youngest age class: one 
might suppose that this decline is ma inly due to those who have alread y found a job or enrolled again in 
education. Nevertheless, in many c ountries there are still more than 20 % of young people aged 25-29 
years considered as NEET. 
2.2.4.  Transition between education and work takes place mainly between 18 and 24 
Half of 20 year-old young people were  on the EU labour market in 200 7. In a number of countries, the 
age of entry onto the labour mark et has increased between 2000 and 2007. In this period, the youngest 
age at which at least 50  % of young people entered the labour mark et increased by 2 years in Greece, 
Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, Romania and Slovakia. On the other hand, Austria experienced in the same 
time period that the youngest age at  which at least 50 % of young peopl e entered the labour market was 
reduced by two years. 
EN 29   EN In 2007, the vast majority of 15 year-olds were in education/training and not active in employment. The 
exception here is Denmark, where near ly half of the 15 year-olds (48. 5 %) were both in education and 
active in the employment market. The proportion of  young people devoting themselves exclusively to 
education or training decreases w ith age whereas the proportion of young people character ised as active 
increases with age. Indeed, 90.7 % of all Europeans aged 15 years old in 2007 were in education or 
training, while this number dropped to 3.2 % for 29 yea r-olds. At the age of 29, roughly three-quarters of 
the young population were categoris ed as economically active.  
Transition from education to employme nt mainly takes place between 18 and 24. An indicator of this is 
that among 18 year-olds, 59 % were exclusively in e ducation or training in 2007, while only 13 % were 
categorised as exclusively economically active. At the age of 24, on the other hand, the proportion has 
switched, with a majority of young people being active. Around 20 % of 18 year olds in the EU combine 
education or training with employment. For 24 year  olds, the rate is slightly reduced to 16 %. 
In some Member States (Denmark, the Netherlands, Austria, the United Kingdom ), the majority of 18 
year-olds were in education or training while they were also active on the employment market. In most 
Member States, however, a majority  of young people were still only in education/training and inactive on 
the labour market 
In both 2000 and 2007 at least half of  all 20 year-olds were on the labour market either as unemployed or 
employed (full-time or part-time). There were striki ng differences across the European Union, however, 
with young people entering the labour market much earli er in some countries (Denmark, the Netherlands, 
Austria, and the United Kingdom) than in others  (Greece, Italy, Luxembourg, Hungary and Romania). 
Among 24 year-olds, a majority of young people were  economically active and not in education. In 
Denmark, however, almost half combined both work and education, while in th e Netherlands, Finland 
and Slovenia three out ten 24 year-olds did the same. At  the same time, these countries were among those 
that recorded the highest  employment rates.  
In 16 EU Member States, more than 50 % of 15-24 year-o lds were inactive in the labour market one year 
after leaving school. This is double the rate as for 25-29 year-olds.  
In a majority of EU Member States (except in De nmark, Italy, the Netherlands, Finland, Sweden and the 
United Kingdom) more than 70 % of 29 year-olds we re economically active and no longer in education.  
2.2.5.  The higher the level of education, the lower the risk of unemployment 
USEFUL CONCEPTS AND DEFINITIONS 
Employment rate  represent persons in employment as a percentage of the economically active 
population. 
Unemployment rate  represent unemployed persons as a pe rcentage of the economically active 
population. 
Unemployment ratio  represents unemployed persons as a percentage of th e total population. 
Long-term unemployed  persons are persons who have been unemployed for one year or more. Long 
term unemployment is computed as a percentage of total une mployed in the same age group. 
Source: Eurostat, "Labour force survey: Methods and definition" 
Unemployment rates decrease with the level of education. Among EU Member States, people with lower 
secondary education are nearly 3 more times at risk  of unemployment than people with higher education. 
EN 30   EN The unemployment gap between those with low levels and high levels of education slightly increased 
from 2000 to 2007. It is probable that  people with a low level of edu cation are more subject to labour 
market adjustment, particularly as economies are impacted by internationa lisation and increasing 
competition with emerging economies. 
2.2.6.  Diplomas – no guarantee for employment 
In 2007, only 20.7 % of young Europeans who attained lower secondary education were employed one 
year after they left ini tial education. This proportion trebled for young people w ith a tertiary qualification 
(65.8 % of those were employed one year after leav ing education). Still, wh atever their level of 
education, the transition to employment takes tim e for a significant proportion of young people. The 
more demanding they are (in terms of expected wages,  working conditions, etc.), the more difficult it will 
be to find a job. This may also reveal the inadequacy  of some tertiary education programmes to the need 
of the national labour market. The majority of the member Stat es followed the Eu ropean trend with 
Greece getting out of the lot with generally high est unemployment rates recorded among young people 
having higher level of education.  
RESEARCH FINDINGS OF THE SPREW PROJEC T: SOCIAL PATTERNS OF RELATION 
TO WORK6 
Are there changing patterns of relation to work among younger and older generations? 
The overall objective of the SPReW proj ect was to examine the factors leading to solidarity or tensions in 
intergenerational relations, in th e specific area of work and correla ted fields. While “age” is also an 
important variable, it can be observed from the SPReW results, that  other variables (in particular gender, 
but also education, socio-profes sional groups, economic developmen t, institutional contexts) may 
overwhelm the effect of th e “generation” variable. 
Contrary to a widespread opinion that young people are more instrumental and le ss interested by work, 
young people (< 30) have a more "expre ssive" relation to work, i.e. a grea ter request for self-fulfilment in 
work (esp. when they are highly educated): the huma n relations at work and the social usefulness are 
important to them, as well as the opportunities to express oneself at work, the interest of the work, the 
feeling of success and th e level of autonomy.  
– Both the educational level of workers and the femini sation of the labour market increased significantly 
in recent years. Women appear to be more expressi ve, although they are likely to change their attitude 
when they have a family to care for. Women’s wo rking pattern changes after maternity, from a very 
expressive to a more instrumental one. 
– Young people (< 30) are more exposed to low wages, precariousness and unemployment although 
they benefit from a positive educational and digi tal differential in comparison with the older. 
Although they are less afraid about instability and precariousness than the previous generations, they 
ask for more social protection and higher income but  also for more freedom and opportunity for self-
development. 
Despite objectives differences, a “perception” of conflict among genera tions does not really emerge. 
Nevertheless, we should consider the possibility that  more awareness of generations may initiate social 
tensions in the future. The two "extreme" groups on the labour market seem to face an identical problem, 
since both lack a fair  recognition at work. 
                                                 
6 The SPREW project was funded under the 6th framework programme of the European Union (Citizens and 
governance programme) and involved research partners from six countries (BE, FR, DE, HU, IT, PT), running from May 2006 - August 2008 – Info: http://www.ftu-namur.org/sprew
. 
EN 31   EN From one side, young people feel undervalued as for their education, whereas the older generation people 
feel undervalued as for their work ex perience. Above all, they  fear about losing their job because they are 
aware that companies are not  going to consider any l onger the result of many ye ars of learning-by-doing 
as a real resource. 
2.2.7.  Young people in unemployment 
Once the transition from education to employment is over, a later step should be surmounted: find a 
stable job. This is probably an important step for t hose who want to settle down (set up a family or buy a 
house). Indeed, unstable job (i.e. tem porary or part-time job) might have  repercussions on the family life 
such as the difficulty to get a real estate loan, to l eave parental home, to set up a family, to have children. 
Unemployment rates by age gro up (15-24, 25-74, total), EU-27, 2008 
0246810121416
15-24 25-74 Total
 
Source: Eurostat (Labour Force Survey ) 
Youth unemployment rate (15.3 % in 2007, 15.4 % in 20 08) is nearly twice th e percentage observed 
among the whole working population and nearly thr ee times higher than for the older economically 
active population. But the EU Member States show a large spectrum of results. In 2007; the Netherlands 
and Denmark had the lowest youth unemployment ra tes for (respectively at 5.9 % and 7.9 %). The only 
other Member States with youth unemployment rates below 10 % for the age class 15-24 were Austria, 
Ireland and Lithuania.  
At the other extreme, for the age group 15-24 y ears, youth unemployment rates above 20 % were 
recorded in Greece, Italy, Pola nd, Romania and Slovakia in 2007. 
EN 32   EN Unemployment rate 15-24 by country, 2007 
0 5 10 15 20 25EU 27BelgiumBulgariaCzech RepublicDenmarkGermanyEstoniaIrelandGreece SpainFranceItalyCyprusLatviaLithuaniaLuxembourgHungaryMaltaNetherlandsAustriaPolandPortugalRomaniaSloveniaSlovakiaFinlandSwedenUnited Kingdom
 
Source: Eurostat (Labour Force Survey) 
For the age group 25-29 unemployment rates exceeded 10 %, in Greece, Portugal, Italy, Spain, France, 
Poland and Slovakia. Youth unemployment rates in Europe as a whole decreased by about 3 % from 2000 to 2007 for both age groups. At Me mber States level, the situa tion varies. For the youngest age 
group, four Member States (Sweden, Portugal, Hungary and Luxembourg recorded significant increases 
(more than 5 %). Regarding the oldest age group, onl y Portugal recorded a note worthy raise (more than 
7 %). Nonetheless the crisis can ch ange a lot the situati on on the labour market in  different countries. 
As regards gender difference, unemployment rates fo r young women in the EU are generally higher than 
for young men. While some Member States show small differences between male and female youth 
unemployment rates, there are a few countries with very significan t gender gaps. The most extreme case 
is Greece, where the female youth unemployment rate is almost twice as high as for young males for both 
age groups. Other Member States with a particular  large youth unemployment gender gap are Spain and 
Portugal. 
2.2.8.  Long term youth unemployment 
Young people in unemployment and especially those in long term unemployment are at risk of social 
exclusion. Generally, those people have a socially un acceptable income not allowing a life which fits the 
societal standards.  
At the European level 26 % of unemployed aged 15-24 and 35 % of unemployed 25-29 were 
unemployed for 12 month or more. 
At the Member State level, ther e is a strong heterogeneity. For th e younger age-group ( 15-24) the long 
term-unemployment rate ranges from less than 4 % in Sweden to 57 % in Slovakia. In Slovakia, 
EN 33   EN Romania, Bulgaria, Greece, Italy, Hungary and Pola nd more than one third of unemployed people have 
been without a job for more  than one year. For the oldest age gr oup, nearly half of the countries show 
higher rates than the EU averag e, which stands at 35 %.  
Generally, long term unemployment is negatively correla ted with the level of e ducation completed and it 
tends to decrease with higher education. Nevertheless, there are two exceptions - Estonia and Lithuania - 
which recorded the highest share of long term  unemployment among young people who have tertiary 
education. 
Looking at the youth unemployment to population ratio instead of the unemployment rate shows a 
different picture. The European unemployment rati o in 2007 for young men aged 15-24 was 6.8 % while 
it was 7.3 % for young people aged 25-29. Sweden  and Greece register ed the highest youth 
unemployment ratio for young people ag ed 15-24 and 25-29 resp ectively. Lithuania displayed the lowest 
youth unemployment ratio for young people in both age groups. In some Member States, the difference 
between the unemployment rate and empl oyment ratio is higher than 15 %.  This reveals that the majority 
of young people are inactive because of education. 
2.2.9.  Working while studying, studying while working 
On average, around one-third of European employe d youth aged 15-24 are students or apprentices, 
compared to only 16 % of the 25–29 age group. In some c ountries this share is much higher: in Denmark 
and the Netherlands over 65 % of employed youth are students or ap prentices While in Finland and 
Germany more than half of employ ed youth are students or apprentices . Conversely, the lowest share of 
students or apprentices among employed young people was observed in  Romania (about 5 % for both 
youth age groups).  
USEFUL CONCEPTS AND DEFINITIONS 
Employers employing one or more employees  are defined as persons who work in their own business, 
professional practice or farm for the purpose of earning a profit, and who employ at least one other 
person  
A Self-employed  person not employing any employees are de fined as persons who work in their own 
business, professional practice or farm for the purpose of earning a profit, and who employ no other 
persons. 
Employees  are defined as persons who work for a public or private empl oyer and who receive 
compensation in the form of wages, salaries, fees, gratuities, payment by results or payment in kind; non-
conscript members of the arme d forces are also included. 
Family workers  are persons who help another member of th e family to run a farm or other business, 
provided they are not classed as employees. 
Employees with temporary contracts  are those who declare themselves as having a fixed term 
employment contract or a job which will terminat e if certain objective criteria are met, such as 
completion of an assignment or return of  the employee who was temporarily replaced. 
Full-time/part-time pattern of the main job  is declared by the respondent except in the Netherlands, 
where part-time is determined if the usual hours are fewer than 35 hours and full-time if the usual hours 
are 35 hours or more, and in Sweden where this  criterion is applied to the self-employed. 
Source: Eurostat 
EN 34   EN 2.2.10.  Temporary contracts 
For many young people, having a tempor ary or part-time job may be s een as a stepping-stone towards 
permanent employment. However, it also limits a pe rson's possibility to expr ess his or her potential. 
Temporary contracts therefore limit the fina ncial and personal autonomy of young Europeans. 
Percentage of people aged 15-24 that have a temporary job  
because they could not find permanent job, 2007 
 
 
The share of young people on a temporary contract decrea ses with age. At the European level, almost  
40 % of employed 15-24 year-olds work on a temporar y contract, with more than 60 % on a temporary 
contract in Slovenia, Poland a nd Spain. This is reduced to ar ound 20 % for the 25-29 age group and 
down to less than 10 % for employed people age 30-54. This shows that young people face not only a 
transition from school to work but also a transition from an unstable to a stable employment situation. 
With such a situation, there is a risk that a you ng person becomes "trapped" in unstable employment, 
moving from one temporary contract to another w ithout being able to get into a permanent job.  
The use of temporary contracts is increasing. Betw een 2000 and 2007, there was an increase in the use of 
such contracts of about 5 %. In Poland, this  increase has been even more significant. 
There are no large gender differences at EU leve l with respect to tempor ary youth employment. On 
average, young women are slightly more likely to be in a temporar y contract than young men, although 
there are of course differen ces between Member States.  
At the European level, more th an 50 % of low educated young peop le aged 15-24 have temporary 
contracts. This percentage decr eased with the level of educa tion and was down to 38.5 % among young 
people with tertiary education. Among young people aged 25-29, around 25 % was on a temporary contract independent of the level of education.  
Temporary work may be either volun tary or involuntary. The later comp rises persons that could not find 
a permanent job, enter a contract with a period of tr aining or who are in a proba tionary period (which is 
considered as temporary work if the cont ract finishes automatically at its end). 
EN 35   EN At the European level, the majority  of young people in temporar y work did not choose it. This is true for 
all EU Member States except for Slovenia, wher e about 60 % young people ag ed 15-24 in temporary 
work did not want a permanent job. The proportion of  young people choosing temporary work is slightly 
higher in the 15-24 age group than among 25-29 year-olds in all EU Member States, except in the 
Netherlands, Slovenia, Finland, Sweden and the United Kingdom.  
The percentage of persons on a temporary contract who could not find a permanent job increases with 
age. At the European level, this was the cas e for around 37 % of young people age 15-24, while it was  
65 % for those aged 25-29. 
2.2.11.  Part-time work 
Just as more young people are entering the labour mark et on temporary contracts, they are also over-
represented among employees in part-time jobs. Thes e two conditions are ofte n complementary: A young 
person might both have a part-time j ob and be on a temporary contract.  
On average, 25 % of European young people aged  15-24 who are employed work part-time mainly 
because of education purposes. This is much less th e case for 25-29 year olds, of which only half have 
part-time employment for the same reason.  
The percentage of young European employees who work part-time has increased from 2000 to 2007 for 
the 15-24 age group while remaining more or less st able for the 25-29 age group. However, there is 
considerable variation, both across Member States and according to gender. While about 2 % of 25-29 
year old employees in Slovakia were working part-time, the same was the case for more than 20 % in the 
Netherlands and Denmark.  
Gender differences are very significant when c onsidering temporary work, with young women on 
average almost twice as likely as men for working part-time. Only Romania displayed an insignificant 
gender difference. 
While education or training were the main reasons for accepting a part-time work for the 19-24 year olds, 
reasons for having a part-time work are more bala nced among the age group 25-29. The most frequent 
reason was to look after children or other family memb ers. Other reasons include own illness or disability 
or other family or personal reasons. However, in Greece, 69 % of part-time wo rkers aged 25-29 declared 
to be in such a job because it was no t possible to find full-time employment. 
2.2.12.  Young entrepreneurs 
The proportion of young people running their own busin ess is very low in Europe: about 4 % of young 
people aged 15-24 and 9 % of the age group 25-29 are self-employed. In all EU Member States the 
percentage of self-employed is hi gher in the 25-29 age group than among 15-24 year olds, and the rate of 
self-employed persons does not reach 10 % of the employed populati on for the age group 25-29 except in 
Greece, Italy, Cyprus, Poland, Romania and Slovakia. 
During the period 2000-2007, the share of self-empl oyed young people in Europe slightly decreased. 
Italy had in 2007 the highest percentage of self -employed young people aged 15-29 in Europe, with 
double the EU average. 
In most EU Member States, men made up the majority of self-employed. There was no significant gender 
difference in Cyprus. With regard to age, Belg ium, Cyprus, Luxembourg, Hungary, Malta and Austria 
showed a higher proportion of self-employment among  men aged 25-29 compared to men in the 15-24 
age group. The opposite trend was the case for women, with the highest self-e mployment rate in the 
youngest age category. 
EN 36   EN In most Member States, entrepreneurial mindsets s eem to be more widespread among young people with 
upper secondary school. The exceptions in this regard  are Spain, Malta and Romania, where more than 
60 % of self-employed youth aged 15-24 had lowe r education. Luxembourg recorded the same 
proportion among highly educated young people aged 25-29.  
According to the Factors of Business Success Surv ey (FOBS), less than 15 % of entrepreneurs are 
younger than 30 years old, 38 % between 30 and 39 year s and 48 % of them are 40 years old or over. 
This has to be considered with caution since only few EU Member St ates collect data. The population 
that was surveyed in this project was enterprises bor n in 2002, that had survived to 2005, and that were 
still managed by their founders at th e time of the survey. The survey was carried out from June 2005 to 
January 2006 by the National Statis tical Institutes of 13 EU Member States (the Czech Republic, 
Denmark, Estonia, Trance, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Austria, Portuga l, Slovenia, Slovakia, 
Sweden, Bulgaria and Romani a), on a voluntary basis.  
Six out of 10 entrepreneurs did not have any special training. Almost  all of those who did go through 
training did it on their own in itiative. The exceptions here are Italy a nd France: in Italy about half of the 
entrepreneurs undertook a special training on thei r own initiative while one fourth of French 
entrepreneurs did so upon a public authority’s request. The same pa ttern applies for all ages: young 
entrepreneurs did not get more specific training than their older counterparts. 
Young entrepreneurs have various educational bac kgrounds. Three groups of Member States can be 
distinguished: In the first, a majo rity of entrepreneurs had an upper secondary education (Bulgaria, the 
Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Italy, Austria, Po rtugal, Slovenia, Slovakia and Sweden). In the 
second group, the majority had a tert iary education (Estonia, Latvia Li thuania and Luxembourg) while in 
the third group, consisting only of Ro mania, a majority of the entrep reneurs had a primary or lower 
secondary education. 
Among the most important motivations for starting one's own business in al l countries that participated in 
the survey were a desire for new challenges and being one’s own boss. Future earning is also an 
important aspect when starting up  its own business: about 80 % of  Czech, Romanian, Slovenian and 
Slovakian entrepreneurs reported the fi nancial aspect as main motivation.  
Avoiding unemployment could motivate young people to se t up their own business. This was stated as 
being an important motivation for a majority of young entrepreneurs in all participating countries apart 
from the Czech Republic, Latvia, Austria, Sweden, Luxembourg and Denmark. 
2.2.13.  Focus of activity 
Participation of young people in the economic sector depends on the structure of each national economy. 
At the EU level, young people aged 15-24 are proportionally more numerous  in the sectors of wholesale 
and retail trade. On the other hand, manufacturing shows the highest share of young people aged 25-29. 
These sectors were also the main one s employing older people aged 30-54.  
Half of young people aged 15-24 are employed in low skilled or elementary occupations. Nearly 20 % 
are employed either as legislators, se nior officials and manager, professi onals or technicians or associates 
professionals. Of course, youth aged 15-24 are underrepresented in senior  or management positions given 
their young age and their lack of experience.  
About 4 out of ten young people aged 25-29 has skill ed non manual positions and more than 25 % are 
occupied as skilled manual employees. The proporti on of young adults working in elementary and low 
skilled non manual occupations stands at 35 %.
EN 37   EN KEY FIGURES RELATING TO EM PLOYMENT OF YOUNG PEOPLE 
• 57.5 % of young Europeans aged 15-29 are considered as economically active (meaning that they are 
either employed or activ ely seeking employment) 
• More than one third of young people aged 15-24 ar e NEETs (Not in Education, Employment or 
Training) 
• The unemployment rate of young people aged 15-24 considered economically active was 15.4 % in 
2008, almost three times as high as for the older economically active population 
• Half of young people aged 20 are on the labour market 
• 26 % of unemployed 15-24 year-olds and 35% of une mployed 25-29 year-olds have been unemployed 
for more than 12 months 
• One third of employed 15-24 year-olds are students or apprentices 
• Half of employed 15-24 year-olds are in a low skilled or elementary occupation 
• 40% of employed 15-24 year-olds work on a temporary contract 
• 25 % of employed 15-24 year-olds have a part-time job 
• 4 % of youth aged 15-24 are self-employed entrepre neurs, while the same goes for 9% of 25-29 year-
olds 
2.3. Young people and social exclusion  
2.3.1.  Unequal access to opportunities 
Unequal access to opportunities tends to deepen  the gap between young people's life prospects.  
The prospects of young people vary widely, accord ing to their socio-economic background and other 
variables. A number of youth groups are more exposed  to social exclusion an d poverty than others. 
Amongst the factors leading to this  situation are early sc hool dropouts, low educa tional achievements, a 
migrant or Roma background, mental  health problems, a low socioeconomic background, disability, 
exposure to violence and substance abuse.7  
The problems experienced by such groups of youth ca n, amongst others, be translated into decreased 
access to necessary services, poor health, lack of decent housing or homelessness, financial exclusion, reduced participation in the community and further exclusion from the labour market and, consequently, 
shorter life expectancy. Accordingly, access to e ducation and training, increased opportunities for 
entering the labour market (including measures to facilitate the transition from school to work), provision 
of decent housing and quality health car e, access to basic services such as  transport and to other services 
such as financial services (e.g. credit), are am ong the welfare goods faci litating opportunities and 
supporting integration within society
8.  
2.3.2.  Living conditions  
Children and young people, in particular from disadva ntaged backgrounds, face higher risk of social 
exclusion and poverty. Data shows that livi ng conditions during ch ildhood and young age have a 
                                                 
7 http://ec.europa.eu/employment_social/spsi/poverty_social_exclusion_en.htm 
8 EU indicators, European Commission Staff Working Docume nt, Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs 
and Equal Opportunities Units E2 and E4, 2008. 
EN 38   EN significant impact on further life prospects.9 There is a vicious circle of intergenerational inheritance 
following from growing up in a household defined as be ing at risk of poverty and social exclusion and 
thus having less access to opportun ities. Of the 16 % of Europeans at  risk of poverty, 19 million are 
children (age 0-17). Children  are often at greater risk -of-poverty than the rest of the population (19 % in 
the EU, 2007 figures). This is true in most countries except in  Denmark, Finland, Sweden, Cyprus and 
Slovenia. Child poverty rates range from 10 % in Denmark to 25 % in Italy and Romania. 
Rate of people at risk-of-poverty in th e EU (%), whole population and children, 2005  
051015202530
EU25 DK FI CY DE SI FR NL BE AT SE BG* CZ SK MT EE LU PT IE EL ES UK IT LT RO* HU LV PL
Children (0-17) Total% of total population concerned
 
Source: SILC (2006)  
A detailed analysis of the determ inants of child poverty (age 0-17) was carried out in 2007 by the Social 
Protection Committee, leading to a detailed diagnosis of the main causes of child poverty in each 
country10. The analysis confirms that child poverty outco mes result from complex interactions between 
joblessness, in-work povert y (of households) and the impact of soci al transfers, and that the countries 
achieving the best outcomes are those performing we ll on all fronts, notably by combining strategies 
aimed at facilitating access to employment and enabli ng services (child care et c.) with income support. 
Accordingly, the extent to with lone households and large families ex perience greater risk of poverty 
depends both on their characteristics (age, education level of parents, etc.), and on the labour market 
situation of the parents (joblessness,  in-work poverty, etc.), which can be influenced by the availability of 
adequate support through access to en abling services such as childcare , measures of reconciliation of 
work and family life, and in-work income support. This situation will follow child ren as they grow older. 
2.3.3.  Young people at risk of poverty 
20 % of young people aged 18-24 are regarded as being in risk of poverty (defined as having an income 
below 60 % of the national median income). One in fi ve young people find themselves in this situation. 
Young adults face a higher risk of poverty as suppor t from their parental home diminishes and 
integration to the labour market is still in an early stage. The rate of young people aged 18-24 at risk of 
                                                 
9 "Child Poverty and Well-being in the EU, current status and way forward", Social Protection Committee, January 
2008: EU indicators, European Commission Staff Working Document, Directorate-General for Employment, Social 
Affairs and Equal Opportunities Units E2 and E4, 2008. 
10 "Child Poverty and Well-being in the EU, current status and way forward", Social Protection Committee, January 
2008 
EN 39   EN poverty, when looking at their earned income, varies greatly across EU countries , from less than 10 % in 
Cyprus, Malta and Slovenia to 30 % or more in Denmark and Sweden11.  
However, when trying to assess young people's actual living conditions, figures on youth income have to 
be interpreted with great cauti on and supplemented with  knowledge on other determinants on poverty 
and social exclusion, as this indi cator alone does not accurately re flect the living c onditions of young 
people, covering access to resources  and to opportunities. This implie s that the earned income of young 
people on its own does not give an accurately reflect whether a young person is deprived of 
opportunities, or if their life prospects are under threat.  
Young people, who have left the parental home, have often limited financial means,  but they nevertheless 
have access to housing and can benef it from their own source of income, through work, student loans or 
benefits. They might also  receive financial support12 from their family, which means that living on one's 
own is not always a sign of self-s ufficiency. In average, young people left the parental home at a mean 
age of 25 years. Thus, a majority of young people in Denmark and Finland have left the parental home, 
unlike most young people in other EU countries wh ere between 66 % and 88 % of 18-24 year-olds are 
still living with their parents13. Among the reasons for this is acce ss to student loans or benefits, or 
financial support from their family. Moreover young peopl e who have left their parental home often have 
access to housing, despite very limited income. Young pe ople living with their parents are likely to face a 
lower risk of being in a risk situ ation, since they benefit directly from the income of their parents. 
However, further analysis would be needed to determine, whether they stay with their parents by choice, 
or because they cannot become self-suffi cient through lack of access to employment14 and housing. 
                                                 
11 Social protection and social inclusion 2008: EU indi cators, European Commission , Directorate-General for 
Employment, Social Affaires and Equal Oppo rtunities, Units E.2 and E.4, October 2008. 
12 Financial support from parents is recorded as income in EU-SILC under the inter-household transfer component only 
insofar as these transfers are regular. 
13 Social protection and social inclusion 2008: EU indi cators, European Commission , Directorate-General for 
Employment, Social Affaires and Equal Oppo rtunities, Units E.2 and E.4, October 2008. 
14 The Commission working document accompanying the 2007 Commission  Communication 'Promoting young 
people's full participation in education, employment and society' provides a detailed analysis of the employment 
situation of young people together with a revival of Member  State policies to foster youth employment in the context 
of the Lisbon Strategy for growth and jobs. See: http://ec.europa.eu/employment_social/employment_strategy/pdf/youthswd_2007_en.pdf
. 
EN 40   EN At risk of poverty rate of  age groups 16-24 and 24-49 , 2006  
 
18 % of young people aged 18-24 earn less than half the average income for the country they live in. 27 
% of young people earn less than 60 % (the income level below 60 % of the median income is defined as 
"at risk of poverty"), and 11 % of young people earn le ss than 40 % of the average national income (in 
2006).  
KEY FIGURES RELATING TO SOCIAL  INCLUSION OF YOUNG PEOPLE 
• 19 million children (age 0-17) are at risk of poverty in the EU 
• 20 % of young people aged 18-24 are at risk of poverty 
• In average, young people leave the parental  home at 25 years of age (mean age) 
• 18 % of young people aged 18-24 earn le ss than half the average income for the country they live in 
EN 41   EN 3. ACTIVE  CITIZENSHIP 
3.1. Citizenship and participation 
3.1.1.  Active citizenship: today’s choices,  the life of tomorrow’s community 
Active citizenship of young people, as the “ political participation and partici pation in associational life 
characterized by tolerance and non violence and the a cknowledgement of the rule of law and human 
rights”15, is a key component of the future  of European Union. It is also  a political pr iority at the 
European level. 
USEFUL CONCEPTS AND DEFINITIONS 
The term citizenship  is used to express three different c oncepts which can be used simultaneously: 
• what a citizen is, i.e. his or her status; 
• what a citizen can or cannot do, i.e. in terms of rights and duties; and 
• which activities a citizen undertakes, i.e. a set of pract ices that demonstrate his/ her or membership of 
a society. 
3.1.2.  Information: the key to participation? 
Information of young people is, on the basis of the White Paper on Youth16, a priority at the European 
level. It is increasingly seen as key for ensuring their access to  social and civic opportunities.  
According to the 2006 Commission analysis of national reports under the Youth open method of 
coordination17, 12 Member States presented comprehensiv e youth information strategies (Austria, 
Belgium, Spain, Finland, France, Luxembourg, Malta,  Portugal, Slovenia, Slovakia, Netherlands, and 
Czech Republic).  
18 Member States (Austria, Belgium, Czech Re public, Germany, Denmark, Spain, Estonia, Greece, 
Finland, France, Italy, Luxembourg, Latvia, Ma lta, Netherlands, Portugal,  Slovenia, and United 
Kingdom) had also created youth web portals at this time. 
Data about 20 Member States is cu rrently available in the European Knowledge Centre on Youth Policy 
(EKCYP) database, and over 2300 information points at national or regional level are registered. 
3.1.3.  Youth Participation  
On the basis of the White Paper on Youth, participat ion of young people is – like information – a priority 
of the EU open method of coordination. Two kinds of  participation have been identified by Member 
States as common objectives  for increasing participation of young people: participat ion in community 
life and participation in representative democracy. 
Since the publication of the White Paper, a number of Member States have clarified or  strengthened the 
legal rules governing participation by young people. Th ese provisions often refer to the legal recognition 
                                                 
15 Indicators for active citizenship and citizens' education. Research report  for the European Commission, DG EAC 
16 European Commission White Paper of 21 November 2001 on a new impetus for European youth, COM(2001) 681  
17 Commission Staff Working Document SEC(2006) 1006 
EN 42   EN of local youth councils or the powers devolved to national youth councils. A number of Member States 
have made participation by young people a nationa l priority through the adoption of annual or 
multiannual strategic plans. All EU Member States have representative structures in schools and 
universities and, increasi ngly, youth councils and ch ildren's or youth parliaments. (Commission Staff 
Working Document: Analysis of national reports submitted by the Member States concerning participation by and information for young people).  
The following analysis is mainly based upon Eurobarome ter surveys, the Member States' national reports 
on participation of young people and information av ailable in the EKCYP system. Information on a 
number of Member States is missing, and it is not possible to identify overall pan-European trends. For 
the future, improving data defini tion and collection about the fo llowing issues is recommended: 
membership of trade unions and youth organisations, participation in elections , numbers of young people 
elected at regional and local leve l, definition of ‘youth councils’ and othe r participatory structures, 
percentage of young people who are members of youth organisations (s ome Member States include, for 
example, membership of sports clubs), or categor isation of different type s of financial support. 
Nevertheless, a first picture of the developm ents in youth participation can be given.  
3.1.4.  A decline in traditional me mbership of organisations 
Membership in organisations, associations and clubs  does not seem to be very appealing to young people 
in the European Union: Only 22 % of young people answ ered "yes" to the question: "are you member of 
an organisation?" 
There is a clear division between the northern Member States, where young people are more often 
members of clubs and associations, and the southern Member States, where such membership is less 
extensive. 
Previous surveys in 1997 and 2001 i ndicate that membership of sports  clubs is very popular. This is 
confirmed in the reporting from 2007: almost half  of young persons (49 %) are members of a sports club. 
Far behind follows memberships in youth organisations and cultural associations (8 %), trade unions and 
hobby clubs (7 %), political parties and religious associations (5 %). Human rights movements and 
consumer organisations have the smallest number of young memberships. 
But young people still participate in a lot of activities. Re creational groups and re ligious organisations 
and were the most popular engagements for Eu ropean youth in 2006. 26.8 % of the young men (aged 
between 16 and 29) interviewed took part in r ecreational activiti es through dedicated groups or 
organisations, and 18.9 % of young women interviewed did so during the last 12 months. Religion is still 
a common way of being active in society, with a 20.1 % of young women practicing this option and 16 % 
of young men. Only few young people (less than 4 %) partic ipated in activities of  political parties or 
trade unions during 2006. 
EN 43   EN Some examples of trade unions membership among young people 13-30   
Country Percentage (estimate) 
Finland 10 
Germany  3.7 
Greece 2.3 
Romania 0.05 
Slovakia 3.9 
Slovenia 6.04 
United Kingdom 10 % of peopl e aged 16-24, and 24 % of 
people aged 25-34 
Source: European Knowledge Centre  on Youth Policy (EKCYP) 2006-2007 
Percentage of the population aged 16- 29 that participated in the last  12 months in activities of…, 
by sex, EU-25, 2006 
 
Men aged 16-29 have been more activ e than women in the last 12 months  in getting involved in political 
parties, trade unions, professional associations and recreational groups . Women participated more in 
church activities and other religious organisations a nd charitable activities.  
There is no substantial difference between the participation rate of  young people (16 – 29) and the overall 
population. 
EN 44   EN Percentage of the population of age group that participated 
in the last 12 months in activities of…, EU-25, 2006 
 
3.1.5.  Interest in participative democracy 
When asked which political actions are most importa nt to ensure that their voice is heard by policy 
makers, 30 % of young Europeans list participating in de bates as the most important activity. Joining a 
political party comes second (16 %) and taking part in a demonstrati on third (13 %). Signing a petition, 
being a member of or supporting a non-governmental organization (NGO) , or joining a trade union is 
equally recognized as an effective way of political  activism by 11 % of Europ ean youth (Eurobarometer 
2007 survey on Youth). More than one in four young people signed a petition during the last year, and 
almost the same number presented his or her view  in an online discussion forum. One in five young 
Europeans took part in a public demonstration. 
The highest level of overall po litical involvement among young pers ons was recorded in Denmark, 
Finland and Sweden, and the lowest in Latv ia, Bulgaria, Estonia, Hungary and Malta. 
Young men tend to be more active, in particular when presenting their vi ew in an online forum or taking 
part in a public demonstration. 
Young Europeans living in a metropolitan or urban area are more likely to be i nvolved than those from 
rural areas. 
3.1.6.  Legal framework for participation structures  
The above mentioned 2006 Commission synthesis report analysed which actions had been implemented 
by Member States to support th e participation structures.  
This report shows that the legal framework for yout h participation has been improved. Some Member 
States have adopted legi slation, others have st rategic action plans or ag reed obligations for the 
consultation of young people. This may be an act that  requires each local author ity to recognise/establish 
one or more youth councils (Belgium), a policy con cept (the Czech Republic), a budget for participation 
(Denmark), a local youth act (Finland ), a social code (Germany), a national action plan, a youth law or an 
act (Lithuania, Slovakia, Slovenia), or acts that  regulate agreements between non-governmental 
organisations and the Government (Luxembourg) or which require young people to be consulted (United 
Kingdom). There may also be mechan isms or legislation encouragi ng the self-organ isation of young 
people by regulating the process for the establishment and structuring of youth representation (Bulgaria).  
EN 45   EN In at least six Member States th e existence of school councils is a requirement by law. In Sweden, a 
national campaign called School elections 2006 (' Skolval 2006') was carried out in 1.400 schools all 
across the country a few days before the ordinary na tional, regional and local parliamentary elections.  
In most Member States, activities are aimed towa rds all young people, but with special emphasis on 
certain groups. The types of groups differ per Memb er State, but often in clude immigrants/ethnic 
minorities, women, homosexuals, disabl ed, unemployed or young drug addicts. 
3.1.7.  Youth councils  
The definition, structure and form of youth councils di ffer between Member States. Almost two thirds of 
the Member States have local youth councils . Data from EKCYP indicate th at every municipality in 
Greece and the Flemish part of Belg ium has a youth council. In the Un ited Kingdom, there are more than 
400 local youth councils al though there is no uniform structure for them. Sweden has around 50 local 
youth councils, but here the organisation differs per m unicipality; a number of Swedish municipalities 
have mechanism for a regular dialogue with yo ung people. Finland has 20 youth councils which are 
elected by local authorities and operate within muni cipal structures. In addi tion, Finland has 180 youth 
councils elected by young people themselves (there are 400 municipalities). Ge rmany and Italy and the 
Netherlands report a considerable number of local youth  councils (200, 471 and 124 respectively). In 
new Member States, local youth councils are being formed; Estonia reported 4 in 2005 whic h increased 
to 20 in 2007, in Slovenia 39 youth councils were esta blished after 2000, and in  Romania there are 28. 
For Slovakia and the Czech Republic, the possibility exists to create youth councils; while in Lithuania 
46 out of 60 municipalities al ready have a youth council.  
At the regional level, 15 Member States report having regional youth councils , although some have only 
one. In several countries, the region al youth councils cover most regions : in Germany all "Länder" have a 
council, Estonia has councils at the county government  level while the Slovak Republic has one in each 
region (8 in total). Greece has prefectural youth councils; Lithuania has 25 regional councils and the 
Czech Republic 12. In Denmark all city or district  councils have a youth c ouncil, and Austria and the 
Flemish part of Belgium both have 5 regional councils . The Netherlands, Romania and Bulgaria have to 
regional youth councils each. In the United Kingdom, the regional youth councils are the same as the 
regional youth parliaments.  
Almost all Member States have a national youth council . In most cases, it is an umbrella organisation of 
which other youth organisations ar e members (between 25 and 100 me mbers). National Youth Councils, 
besides Europeans or Internationa l youth NGOs, are normally members of the European Youth Forum. 
3.1.8.  Youth parliaments 
7 Member States reported having youth parliaments at the local level . The structures vary, however, and 
so does the number of youth parliaments. German y has the highest number (300-350) followed by the 
Czech Republic (around 300) and Aust ria (more than 100). Estonia and Bu lgaria report on several local 
parliaments or councils, and Sweden has a few. Finla nd has no official structures , but reports on internet-
based parliamentary forums for children.  
At the regional level , although 6 Member States report some activit y, the number of initi atives is, in most 
cases, limited (some initiatives in Austria (2), Finland (1), Italy (4), Slovenia (2) and the Netherlands). The UK parliament has a network of regional contact s, and the Czech Republic  reports of 15 regional 
youth parliaments. 
At the national level , 13 Member States reported having a yout h parliament although the way they are 
organised differ considerably. In many countries, th e youth parliament is organised annually, as a one 
day event or on a project basis. In Estonia, the yout h parliament is a body with member organisations. In 
EN 46   EN Latvia the National Youth Parliame nt was established in 2004. In th e Netherlands, a youth government 
(Jugendkabinet) was established in  2007. The UK has a youth parliament  with 300 elected members, in 
Wales there is a Youth Assembly, Scotland has a Y outh Parliament and ther e is a Youth Forum for 
Northern Ireland. 
3.1.9.  Other participatory structures 
The most common participatory struct ures are school and student counc ils, pupil and scholar parliaments, 
and information and consultancy se rvices for young people. Other exam ples are open forums, such as 
consultation hours, and project rela ted forms of participation such  as playgrounds and youth centres 
(Austria), advisory bodies of yout h boards and youth clubs (Cyprus). There are also youth organisations 
and adult organisations endorsing children’s ri ghts (Czech Republic), opinion organisations of 
youngsters (Finland) and interactive websites.  
The structures within ministries a nd other public authorities for the pa rticipation of young people seem to 
be more numerous and better developed in some c ountries (such as Finland, Sweden, and Denmark), in 
comparison to others (such as Hungary, Gr eece, UK, Austria, Lithuania and Slovenia). 
3.1.10.  Youth interest in politics 
If we consider the results of the European Soci al Survey, young people aged 16-24 and 25-29 seem to 
show a low interest in politics. A majority of young people declare that they are hardly or not interested 
in politics, whilst only 6 % declare that they are very interested. Am ong older generations, the percentage 
of those very interested in politic s is more than twice as high.  
The interest in politics increases with age: 36 % of people aged 30  and over declared to be quite 
interested in politics, whereas 26 % and 30 %, re spectively, of people aged 16-24 and 25-29 years old 
gave the same answer.  
Apart from the generational gap, interest in poli tics also shows gender differences. Young men respond 
more often than young women that they are interest ed in politics. Almost 40 % of young males declared 
that they are quite or very interested in politics, while a little less than 30 % of females showed such interest. Overall, European youth is seemingly s till distant from politics. 62 % of young men and 70 % of 
young women declare that they are hardly interested or not inte rested at all in politics. 
Some examples of membership of political  parties among young people aged 13-30 
COUNTRY PERCENTAGE 
Czech Republic 1.2 (2005) 
Finland 2 (2006) 
Estonia 4 (2007) 
Germany 2.8 (2007) 
Romania 0.32 (2007) 
Slovak Republic 9.95 (2006) 
Sweden 4 (2006) 
Source: European Knowledge Centre on Youth Policy (EKCYP)
EN 47   EN  
To contradict the findings in the European Social Survey in 2006, a Eurobarometer survey on youth from 
2007 indicated that young Europeans are indeed interested in politics. A majority of respondents say that 
they are very interested or interested in politics and current affairs: 82 % of them  are interested in politics 
in their own country, 73 % claim to be interested at a city or regi onal level, and 66 % say they are 
interested in politics and current affairs in the EU. 
In the Eurobarometer survey, young Greeks have the hi ghest level of interest in politics and current 
affairs, while young people in Romania, Belgium and the Czech Republic have the lowest level of interest in politics in general. 
Older and highly educated young persons, and thos e who live in a metropolitan area, are the most 
interested in politics at all levels. 
These findings, which may seem contradictory, c ould suggest that while young people may be less 
interested in traditional party polit ics, they are indeed engaged in current public and political affairs or 
topics that have a direct impact on their daily lives or on their future in the l onger term (for example on 
climate change). 
THE CIVICWEB PROJECT: YOUNG PE OPLE, THE INTERNET AND CIVIC 
PARTICIPATION 18 
Does the Internet contribute to civic en gagement and participation among young people?  
The CIVICWEB analyses the Internet as a potenti ally powerful tool  for non-formal le arning, affecting the 
development of social ca pital, and civic, political , social and economic part icipation among young people 
(aged 15-25). It focuses sp ecifically on the range of  civic sites now emerging on the web, created by many 
different organisations, intere st groups and individuals, ra nging from small-scale, loca l initiatives to national 
and international projects. 
An online survey among 3.307 you ng internet user s in the seven partic ipating countries (par tly "recruited" at 
the MTV website) reveals that young people are mainly in terested in lifestyle and entertainment issues on the 
internet. Civic participation is only re levant for some 10 % of respondents, with social  justice, sp iritual and 
environmental issues be ing most "popular". Political issues are the least popular it em, but interest in civic and 
political websites ap pears to be stronger among ol der young responde nts, in particular those not li ving with 
their parents, youth  that identify as religious, and among gi rls and young women. 
Gender appears to be a quite signif icant socio-economic vari able, but –surpr isingly– education level does not 
constitute a main feature. Participation in offline and online activities turns out to  be strongly correlated; 
demonstrating that online an d offline are compleme ntary to each other, rather than substitutiv e. Websites by 
‘specialist’ groups (b ased on identity or lo cality) and aimed at a very speci fic audience (a nd often produced 
by members of that specific  group) support a sense of belonging and ‘communi ty’ and are mo re 'used'. 
Regarding the productio n of civic websites fo r young people, the in ternet is mostly re garded as a cheap 
method of disseminating in formation and making contac t with young peop le. However, for a website to be 
known, a lot of thought needs to be  given to marketing and publicity. Most civic website  producers have 
neither the time nor the money to adequately publicise their sites and hence the core of users remain relatively 
                                                 
18 The CIVICWEB project was funded under the 6th framework programme of the European Union (Citizens and 
governance programme) and involved research partners from seven countries (UK, Sweden, The Netherlands, 
Hungary, Spain, Slovenia and Turkey), running from September 2006 - August 2009 – Info: http://www.civicweb.eu/
. 
EN 48   EN small. They mostly function with a combination of one or two part time paid employees and several 
voluntary staff. There is a fairly high turnover of volunteer staff at many of the civic websites surveyed 
and sometimes this leads to the website not being updated for months or even to its closure. 
Static websites composed of visual images and written text are still the norm, though some funders of sites 
appear to think that complex and mo re expensive sites are automatically 'better'. But offeri ng interactivity 
does not automatically mean th at young people part icipate. Forums and interactive applicat ions have to be 
carefully encouraged, motivated and managed. Interaction with the public sphere from young people’s 
perspective appears to be most successful when it is both peer-to-peer and enables opportunities for 
reciprocal engagement with thos e in power – though reciprocity is rarely the case . Dealing with 
controversial issues of social justice (sexuality, gender, etc.) can provoke strong and negative responses 
from some members of the public. 
3.1.11.  Participation by young people in the m echanisms of representative democracy 
The age at which people are eligible to vote is 18 for national elections19, with the exception of Austria, 
where the age was lowered from 18 to 16 in 2007. In Ital y, the age at which people are eligible to vote is 
also 18, except for elections to the Senate, for which the minimum age is 25.  
In most Member States, the age at which people are e ligible to stand for election is 18 as well. However, 
there are variations from 18 to 40, especially for candi dates standing for election as president or in senate 
(candidates must be over 40 years for It alian and Czech Senates for instance).  
Percentage of young people aged 13-30 who vo ted in recent elections, some countries  
 Compulsory 
vote European 
Parliament elections (2004) National elections Regional 
elections 
Austria NO 40 % 78 % Between 66-80 % 
(according to the federal states) 
Belgium Flanders YES 100 % 100 % 100 % 
Finland NO 26 % 56 % 40 % 
Luxembourg YES  100 %  
Malta NO 24 % 24 %  
Romania NO N/A 65.8 %  
Slovak 
Republic NO 9.7 % 44.9 %  
Sweden NO 26.5% of 18-24 
31.6% of 25-29  76.6 % 69.9 % 
                                                 
19 The voting age for local elections in some Federal Stat es of Germany has been lowered to 16 in the 1990s. 
EN 49   EN United 
Kingdom NO 45 % of 18-24 
53 % of 25-34 45 % of 18-24 
53 % of 25-34  
Source: European Knowledge Centre on Youth Policy (EKCYP)  
These results are in line with the results of the Eu robarometer 2007: asked if they have voted in an 
election or referendum in the last three years, 62 % of young Europeans state that they did vote, 13 % 
that they did not vote, while less than one  in four was not yet eligible to vote. 
The largest percentages of  young persons who did not vote in an election or a referendum in the past 
three years is found in Latvia, the United Kingdom and Portugal, and the sm allest percentages in 
Belgium (where voting is compulsory) followed by Swed en and Italy. Almost al l Member States have 
launched campaigns to encourage young people to vote (Commission staff working document: Analysis 
of national reports submitted by the Member States concerning participation by and information for young people (SEC (2006) 1006). 
Asked which measures would help to be more active as a citizen in the society, 19 % answered "if the 
voting age would be lower". 
The post European elections 2004 Flas h Eurobarometer survey (162) show s that at European level, the 
propensity to abstain from voting is higher when th e voter is young (or a manual worker). More than 
two-thirds of voters between 18 and 24 (67%, comp ared to 54.3%) on the average) did not go to the 
polls. Conversely, a minority of pe ople over 55 chose to abstain ( 41%). People between 25 and 39 were 
overrepresented (together with women, people who st udied for a long time and employees) among "one-
day abstentionists", people who deci de the very day of th e election not to vote. They are thus a group 
which can most easily be mobilised, all the more as young people also tend to fe el not being sufficiently 
informed about elections. The European Parliament  Eurobarometer (EB Standard 70) survey from 
autumn 2008 points out that the age group of the 17 – 24 year olds failed  to answer the question about the 
date of the next European elections mo re frequently than  any other age group. 
The same European Parliament's survey shows that when asked about elements relative to the sense of 
European citizenship, young people between 15 and 24 y ears clearly distinguish themselves from their 
elders regarding the following th ree areas: 24% of young people (E U average: 18%) think that a 
European identity card in addition to a national iden tity card would strengthen the sense of European 
Citizenship. 21% support being able to vote in all el ections organised in the Member State where one 
resides as opposed to th e 19% of older respondents  and 21% support a European civic education course 
for children from primary school age as  opposed to 18% of older respondents. 
3.1.12.  Promoting participation thro ugh the European Union 
Promoting participation is one of the priorities of the EU Strategy for Youth: Invest ing and Empowering 
(2010-2018). The main objective of this priority is to ensure the full partic ipation of young people in 
society through encouraging youth pa rticipation in non-governmental y outh organisations , civic life and 
in representative democracy. Promoting the partic ipation of non-organised young people is stressed as 
important.  
The European Union concretely supports projects aimed at enhancing participation of young people 
through the Youth in Action Programme (2007-2013). 
"Participation of young people" is on e of the four permanent prioriti es of the Programme. More than 
4.100 projects supported through the programme in 2007 (7 5 % of the projects granted) were described 
by the promoters as targeting this particular priority. 
EN 50   EN The Youth in Action Programme, which succeeded the previous EU YOUT H Programme (2000 – 2006), 
includes two actions of particular  relevance to participation: 
– Action 1.3 Youth Democracy Project s/ A Youth Democracy Project is developed by a European 
partnership, allowing the pooling of  ideas, experiences and methodologi es from projects or activities 
at local, regional, national or European level towards improving young people’s participation. 
– Action 5.1 Meetings of young people a nd those responsible fo r youth policy/ This sub-action supports 
cooperation, seminars and structured dialogue between young people who are active in youth work 
and youth organisations and who addre ss issues related to youth policy. 
In 2007, which was the first year of implementation of  the new Programme, the participation in these two 
actions was the following: 
– more than 5.300 young people participated in 54 projects under sub-Action 1.3; 
– more than 7.900 young people participated in 41 projects under sub-Action 5.1. 
Provisional figures for 2008 suggest  a further increase in the interest for these actions. 
Beyond the Youth in Action Programme , Representations of the Europ ean Commission in member States 
have supported a wide range of actions with the aim of improving participation and active citizenship of 
young people. Activities include simulations of EU institutions, debating activities, competitions and 
workshops with youth organisa tions on selected topics. 
Moreover, among the "Plan D/Debate Europe" proj ects supported by the Eu ropean Commission (DG 
Communication) following the call for proposals in 2007/2008, 26 projects specifically addressed the 
promotion of active participation of through democr atic debate. Activities th at were funded include 
online consultations, polls, group debates and mock pa rliaments. Activities were  generally organised by 
non-governmental youth organisations, lo cal authorities, universities and schools.Similar activities will 
also be carried out in 2009. 
3.1.13.  Trust in institutions  
Confidence in institutions may be c onsidered a prerequisite to becomi ng active citizens. As pointed out 
by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)20, “trust in political 
institutions refers to the extent to which individual s have a high degree of conf idence in the institutions 
(government and parliament) and public admini stration of the country where they live”.  
The European Social Survey has asked people how much they personally trust each of the institutions 
that were mentioned to them21. Results show that Europeans have a la ck of trust of towards their national 
political institutions. Less than 40 % of young people aged between 16 and 29 ha ve trust in (or are 
neutral towards) politicians and political parties. On this issue, th ere is not great difference between age-
groups. While older generations tend to trust (or be neutral towards) politicians slightly more than young 
people, young people tend to be more positive toward  political parties. Th e percentage of people 
(independent of age) that distrust th eir country parliament is slightly over 50 %. However, the distrust of 
politicians in general is even higher than  for the institution of the parliament. 
                                                 
20 OECD, “Society at glance” 2006. 
21 European Social Survey, www.europeansocialsurvey.org  (ESS2 and ESS 3) 
EN 51   EN Trust (or neutral feeling) in poli ce and in the legal system is hi gher in the total population. 75 % of 
people aged 30 and over trust the police, while for the age group under 30,  the percentage is 70. 
Furthermore, 60 % of the total population tr ust the legal system of their country.  
People, and especially the young generation, tend to be  more positive towards international institutions. 
Young people aged between 16 and 29 ha ve more trust in the United Na tions than olde r people: more 
than 70 % of youth trust the UN (with rates of more th an 75 % in the Nordic countries) whereas they 
have only 66 % of trust from the older generation.  
It is commonly know that the European Union suffers from what can be labelled a democratic deficit, 
and is working to overcome this problem. Trust in the European Parliament, which is the only directly 
elected body of the European Union, is neverthele ss above 50 %. 63 % of the population younger than 30 
trust the European Parliament while 52 % in the popul ation aged 30 and over trusted the same institution. 
However, in nearly half the coun tries for which data is available,  more than one third of young people 
below 30 responded that they mistrust the European Pa rliament. Such mistrust re aches more than 40 % in 
Germany, Austria and the United Kingdom and is also the case for those aged between 25 and 29 years 
in Latvia, Hungary and Poland. The distrust of the European Parliament is lower in other countries, 
especially in Belgium, Denmark and Estonia, wher e less than one fourth of all respondents below 30 
expressed such suspicion. 
3.2. Voluntary activities 
The historical context of volunt ary activities among young people differs  throughout Europe. While there 
is a long and continuous tradition of volunteering in  Western Europe, Centra l and Eastern European 
countries has had to re-develop frameworks for voluntary activities and se rvice after the fall of 
communism. This must be taken into account when analysing the current st ate of play and recent 
developments in the field of volunteering.  
Partly because of this reason, the av ailability of data varies consid erably among countries and must be 
assessed in a historical and cult ural context. In some countries , systems for data collection on 
volunteering are not well develope d, and understandings of terms/con cepts related to voluntary service 
may vary considerably. 
USEFUL CONCEPTS AND DEFINITIONS 
Voluntary activities are all kinds of voluntary engagement. They ar e characterised by the following 
aspects: open to all, unpaid, undertaken by own free wi ll, educational (non-formal  learning aspect) and 
added social value. 
Voluntary service is part of voluntar y activities and is characterised by  the following additional aspects: 
fixed period; clear objectives, conten t, tasks, structure and framework ; appropriate support and legal and 
social protection. 
Civic service is a voluntary service ma naged by the State or on behalf of th e State, e.g. in the social field 
or in civil protection. 
Civilian service is an alternative to compulsory military service in some countries, but not voluntary. 
In this report, volunteering is ma inly analysed through assessing national reports on the implementation 
of European common objectives agreed by Member States under the Open Method of Coordination plus 
data from the European Knowledge Centre for Y outh Policy (EKCYP) and Eurobarometer surveys.  
EN 52   EN Available statistics concer ning the rate of particip ation of young people in vol unteering activities are 
insufficient. Most national governments do not system atically collect relevant data on volunteering for 
young people, and there is much room for improvement. 
According to the 2007 Commission analysis of national reports under the Youth open method of 
coordination22, nine countries had either a youth voluntee ring strategy in place or in preparation 
(Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Irela nd, Luxembourg, Netherlands, United Kingdom). All 
countries that have a strategy, also have a volunteering law. Six countries had a voluntary service in place 
(Czech Republic, France, Germany, Italy, Lithuani a, and Luxembourg). In 13 countries, specific 
measures had been taken to enhance the volunteer ing activities of young peopl e with fewer activities 
(Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Finland, Fran ce, Germany, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal, 
Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and United Kingdom). Fran ce, Luxembourg, Belgium and the UK have made 
volunteering a political pr iority of their government s (at the time of the 2007 national reports). Cyprus, 
Greece and Italy have strengthened cooperation with schools; Spain has traditionally a good cooperation 
with Universities on volunteering. Finland has s ought to develop a tripar tite dialogue model for 
volunteering including decision makers, youth worker s and researchers. Austria (Volunteer's Pass), 
Belgium, Finland (Finland), Fran ce (Passport of Commitment), Germany, Poland and Slovakia are 
among the countries which have developed the explic it recognition of individual skills and competence 
acquired through volunteering at national and European (Youthpass) level. 
At the the European Knowledge Centre for Youth Policy (EKCYP) information about the following 16 
EU Member States is currently available (reporting 2007): Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, 
Estonia, Germany, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, The Netherlands, Portugal, Romania, Slovak Republic, 
Sweden, United Kingdom. 
3.2.1.  Older generations are more active in voluntary activities  
Available data suggest that young people participate le ss in voluntary activities th an that of other age 
groups, even when corrected for national differences . Types of volunteering include informal and unpaid 
assistance, caring for other adults and other social ac tivities in clubs, as well as political or community 
organisations. There are huge differe nces across countries, as far as voluntary activities go. Older people 
are most likely to be involved in these activitie s in the Netherlands, Sweden and Denmark, whereas 
participation levels are lowest in the Southern and Central European countries taking part in the SHARE 
Survey (Survey on Health and Retirement in Europe, which does not cover all Member States23).  
A Eurobarometer survey carried out in September 2008 revealed that almost th ree quarters of Europeans 
would consider participati ng in community work or vol unteering after retirement. 
3.2.2.  Youth and voluntary activities: more advocacy than practise 
In a Eurobarometer on youth in January 2007, only 2 % of people aged between 15 and 30 report that 
they regularly participate in voluntary or community work during their leisure time. In the same survey, however, 16 % declare to be engaged (regularly or occasionally) in voluntary activities and 74 % of 
respondents think that "more availa ble programmes encouraging volunta ry work" will help young people 
become more active citizens in society. 
                                                
 
22 Commission Staff Working Document SEC(2007) 1084 
23 The SHARE Survey has been funded  through successive EU Research Framework Programmes. SHARE is a 
multidisciplinary and cross-national panel database of micro-data on health, socio-economic status and social and 
family networks of more than 30,000 individuals aged 50 or over. Eleven countries have contributed data to the 2004 
SHARE baseline study. More countries are joining in later surveys, thus establishing a longitudinal dataset and research infrastructure. Info: http://www.share-project.org/
.  
EN 53   EN In the country questionnaires th at Member States were asked to submit on volunteering under EKCYP24, 
respondents were asked to "tick off" which of a tota l of 17 different kinds of volunteering activities exist 
in their countries (such as Community peacekeepi ng, social assistance, environment, education, 
humanitarian aid, etc.). All cate gories of volunteering have been  selected for Germany and United 
Kingdom, as well as for the Flemish Community of Be lgium. Sweden also has most types of voluntary 
activity. Portugal has 11 out of the 17 categories of  volunteering with the largest number of young people 
participating in the environmental and sports categorie s, while in Italy, data i ndicate that six types of 
volunteering opportunities are present, with the most  popular being welfare, followed by education and 
culture.  
Voluntary activities of young people have gained impor tance at national and European level in recent 
years. There is a large variety of  voluntary activities thr oughout EU, whether they are organised by civil 
society or by public authorities. 
Different realities of volunteering a cross Member States – Some examples 
The United Kingdom  launched a national youth voluntee ring programme called 'vinvolved', 
accompanied by millions worth of grants to suppor t a major expansion in volunteering for young people 
between the ages of 16 and 25. This completes th e funding allocated to yout h volunteering in this 
country. These support local, regional and national volunteering organisations  in their respective 
territories. In addition, a number of organisations support youth volunteer ing specifically and a range of 
organisations offer full-time volunteering opportunities.  There is also a netw ork of more than 400 
volunteer centres throughout the UK.  
In this country , there is a wide range of ways to accred it young people’s learning and achievements in 
non-formal settings, which can include volunteering. The Awards Network has mapped these awards and 
their components against a nine leve l National Qualification Framework. 
In Germany,  the national Child and Youth Plan provides a framework to support the development of an 
effective infrastructure for voluntary activities. This  appears to be well funded and supports organisations 
in the field of child and youth services and welfare at the federal level. Pilot programmes and specific 
projects are also funded. Local a nd regional levels also have specific child and youth plans, under which 
youth volunteering activity is funded; primar ily through 680 local youth welfare offices. 
The two main civic service programmes that recei ve support through a mixture of host organisation, 
state, federal and third party funds are: the Voluntary Social Year a nd the Voluntary Ec ological Year In 
2008 a new civic service focusing on developing countri es has been launched, with funding to provide 
places for about 10.000 volunteers per year. A range of  non-public organisations also support voluntary 
activity (e.g. church es, lottery and private foundations).  
The range of actors in Germany includes government and non-governmental bodies and, also in terms of 
networks, there is a broad range: e.g. the Associa tion of Voluntary Social Welfare Services, the 
Association of Volunteering Agencies and the Federa l Network for Civil Engagement. There are also a 
number of information centres providing informati on on specific civil services, in the fields of the 
environment, sports and culture.  
There are numerous forms of recognition and accr editation for young people, including the “In-Card”, 
which is a certificate for volunteers who are active in  a voluntary organisation. Th ey must have attended 
a special qualification training an d be at least 16, and the card gi ves them discount s on access to 
community services or cu ltural events. Over 3.000 car ds are issued each month. Some Federal States 
                                                 
24 European Knowledge Centre on Youth Policy 
EN 54   EN have their own method of certifyi ng qualifications, and for intern ational volunteers there is an 
International Certificate. 
In Portugal , some 238 youth associations are reported as active in the field of  volunteering, together 
with 207 NGOs, 69 youth groups, 37 student associati ons, one university, 719 a ssociations and other 
private entities, and 128 other bodies. Some 324 public  service organisations at national and regional 
level are reported to be active in volunteering activit y. This suggests a wide range  of actors and activity, 
but may also indicate a degree of fragmentation. Certif icates can be gained by vol unteers for their work.  
In Italy , some 2.800 organisations are re ported as active in voluntary ac tivities. All those operating 
within the National Civic Service are registered on a database. A sub-group of 12 of these, which 
constitutes the Conferenza Nazionale degli En ti per il Servizio Civile,  is described as playing the most 
important role in the youth and voluntary fields. Th is includes CARITAS and WWF. Certificates can be 
gained by volunteers for their work.  
Sweden  also has a long traditi on and history of volunteering, in partic ular in terms of leisure and sports 
associations. Participation rates for the population as a whole are relative ly high – 50 % take part in some 
form of voluntary work. Amongst young people (between the ages 16 and 29), participation rates are 
39 % for men and 43 % for women. The government supports activity primarily through financial 
support to NGOs. In addition, youth organisations can apply for financial suppor t from municipalities. 
There are about 250 organisations  which send or receive volunte ers within approximately 25 
programmes. Although the development of programmes and activities generally ta kes place within youth 
NGOs, the Government has taken the initiative in se veral specific areas, e.g. in the development of 
methods for the recognition of non-formal learni ng. The Government is working on methods for 
recognising non-formal and informal learning in a number of areas and have developed a special 
authority, the Swedish National Commission on Validation, to look into this issue. 
3.2.3.  Obstacles 
Certain groups of young people tend to participate in volunteering much more than others. There are a 
number of barriers to participation;  financial conditions, geographical lo cation, health status and so on. 
These barriers are particularly important for peopl e with fewer opportunities. Unfortunately, there is 
insufficient data to conduct a deeper anal ysis of these differe nces in volunteering. 
The national reports from Member St ates also indicate that competi ng demands and increasing pressure 
on how young people should spend their time, in particul ar from the systems of formal education, can 
also discourage young people from becoming involved in vo lunteering. In some countr ies, a lack of clear 
legal and financial status for volunteer organisations  and projects also const itutes serious obstacles. 
Others barriers include negative peer pressure and a lack of access to appropriate information. Legal and 
insurance issues also have an im pact, alongside more practical issues  such as lack of transport and 
childcare. 
3.2.4.  Initiating voluntary projects at the European level  
Apart from the common objective on volunteering, which was incl uded in the Open Method of 
Coordination in 2002, the European Union has si nce 1996 offered concrete support to voluntary 
activities. The European Voluntary Service (EVS) is an integrated part of the Youth in Action 
Programme (2007-2013) and receives a substantia l share of the programme budget (at least 23 % 
according to the decision which established the programme). In 2007, almost 4.300 young people 
participated in some 2.100 indivi dual or group EVS projects. 62 % of former volunteers under the 
European Voluntary Service consid er that this experience has changed for the better their career 
possibilities. 
EN 55   EN The Council of Ministers adopted in Novemb er 2008 a recommendatio n on the promotion of 
volunteering of young people across Europe25. 
KEY FIGURES RELATING TO ACTIVE CITIZENSHIP OF YOUNG PEOPLE  
• Over 2300 national and regional information poi nts are reported in 20 Member States 
• 22 % of young people in the EU declare that  they are members of an organisation 
• 49 % of young people declare that they are members of a sport club 
• 4 % of young people declare having participated in activities of political pa rties or trade unions 
• Less than 40 % of young people aged between 16 and 29 have trust in (or are neutral towards) 
politicians and political parties 
• 63 % of the population younger than 30 trust the European Parliament  
• 16 % of people aged 15-30 are oc casional or regular volunteers 
• Three out of four young people cons ider volunteering activities as an incentive for their greater 
participation in society. 
                                                 
25 Council Recommendation of 20 November 2008 on the mobility of young volunteers across the European Union 
(2008/C 319/03) 
EN 56   EN  
4. LIFESTYLES 
4.1. Family life 
4.1.1.  General trends 
Many countries are concerned about th eir low birth rates while the soci al reality of family life has 
changed profoundly over recent decades.  
First marriage rates, by sex and age class, expressed per 1000 persons (2003) 
15-24 25-29 30+ 15-24 25-29 30+
BE 173 186 101 83 199 152
BG 273 162 56 120 200 135
CZ 210 188 52 95 200 127DK 114 272 307 49 213 392DE 165 203 172 75 166 248
LV 261 136 51 173 173 92
LT 351 160 52 227 218 103LU 157 184 153 66 168 198HU 209 189 70 95 203 144
MT 328 286 149 154 331 245
NL 150 226 179 65 187 265PL 340 185 51 204 263 112PT 270 233 116 159 256 166
RO 439 176 71 212 278 147
SI 130 183 107 55 161 174SK 286 173 57 151 217 125SE 86 178 248 28 121 290
IS 100 216 275 48 162 347
NO 124 208 199 57 168 290CH 177 242 212 90 200 299Men Women
 
Note : EE, IE, EL, ES, FR, IT, CY, AT , FI, UK data not available  
Source: Eurostat, Demographic statistics 
People are less likely to ente r into a first marriage, a nd, in 2003, did so more than  two years later than in 
1990: the average age at first marriage rose from  24.8 years to 27.4 years for women and from 27.5 to 
29.8 years for men. The average age to en ter into a first ma rriage is 27,3years. 
Furthermore, a significant number of marriages are now between part ners of different  nationalities: 
between 12 % and 15 % in Germany and France, ar ound 20 % in Belgium and Austria and between 25 % 
and 30 % in Estonia, Luxembourg and Cyprus. 
Divorce rates have increased since the 1970s, more  than doubling in some countries, unmarried 
cohabitation has become commonplace, and a large propor tion of children are born outside marriage: in 
most Member States between 25 % and 50 % of all children.  
In spite of this 'de-institutionalisation' of fam ily life, most children st ill live in couple households, 
married or cohabiting. Single-parent households, most of them headed by mothers, accounted for 14 % of 
households with children. 
EN 57   EN 4.1.2.  Leaving the parental home 
One event that contributes to le ad young people toward independence is  when they leave the parental 
home. Transition from parental to own household has a strong relation to fertility rates: as a rule, when 
young people leave home later they have fewer children and later in life. 
In 2005, 66 % of young women and 78 % of men aged 18–24 in the EU were s till living with their 
parents (Eurostat).  According to the data from the EU Labour  Force Survey (2007), the mean age at 
which young people leave parental ho me differ among Member States.  
Mean age of young people leaving home, by gender (2007) 
181920212223242526272829303132
BE BG CZ DE EE EL ES FR IT CY LV LT LU HU MT NL A T PL PT RO SI SK FI UKMales Females 
Note : DK, IE, SE data not available S ource: Eurostat, Labour Force Survey  
The mean age is 25 years.  For men, it varies from 23 in Finla nd to 31.5 in Bulgaria, Slovenia and 
Slovakia. Women leave on average earli er, varying from 22 in Finland to  nearly 30 in Slovakia. Highest 
gaps by gender are registered in Bulgaria and Romani a, respectively 3.8 and 3.2 y ears, while the majority 
of Member States register gaps between one and two years. On average, transition from parental home 
takes place later in Southern and Central Europe than in  other EU countries (often after age 26 for 
women and 28 for men). 
These results are confirmed when considering the me dian age - i.e. age at which half of young people 
have left their home: the value varies from 21 year s of age in Finland to ag e 31 in Slovakia. Women 
leave in average earlier, varyi ng from 20 to just over 28, again in Finland and in Slovakia.  
EN 58   EN Median age of young people leaving home by gender (2007) 
181920212223242526272829303132
BE BG CZ DE EE EL ES FR IT CY LV LT LU HU MT NL A T PL PT RO SI SK FI UKMales Females 
Note : DK, IE, SE data not available S ource: Eurostat, Labour Force Survey  
4.1.3.  Reasons for staying at home longer than before 
A Eurobarometer survey conducted in 2007 on a sample of EU citizens aged 15-30 allow to better 
understand reasons of delaying the leaving of the parental home 
According to this survey, a majority of young Europ eans give financial reasons when asked what they 
believe are the reasons for this delay: 44 % believe that young adults cannot afford to move out, and 28 
% think that there is a lack of affordable hous ing. Furthermore, 16 % of respondents tend to blame 
selfishness, agreeing with the statement that young pe ople today want all the comfort of living at home 
without having to bear the responsi bilities. Respondents in the 12 new Member States are more likely to 
mention the first two reasons when explaining why young adults remain at their parents’ homes. In the 
EU15, however, respondents agree more often with the statement that th ey want all the comfort without 
having to bear all th e responsibilities. 
An analysis of the answers at the national level shows that in 16 out of  27 countries, a lack of financial 
resources is given as the primary ex planation as to why young adults continue to live with their parents. 
Young Greeks, Hungarians and Portuguese tend to put forward this assumption more frequently than 
others (61 %, 64 % and 62 %, respectively).  
In 10 other Member States, the shortage of affordable  housing is selected as th e most significant reason. 
This is particularly notable in Li thuania, where more than one in two young adults (54 %) supports this 
statement, and in Spain (48 %). 
4.1.4.  Household composition 
According to an EU-SILC survey (EU Survey on Income and Living Conditions) from 2005 24,5 % of 
young people (15-29) in EU live in the same household as their partner. For women, three out of ten 
young women (15-29) and near two in  ten young men live in the same household as their partner.  
EN 59   EN In two Member States, the Netherlands and Sweden, more than 40 % of women live with their partners, 
while the maximum concerning men is reached in Sw eden with 30 %. In these cases and generally 
everywhere in Northern Europe most of unions before  the age of 30 are not established on a legal basis. 
Meanwhile, in Greece, Italy, Poland, Cyprus, Slovakia, Malta and Lithuania this share does not exceed 5 
% of women, representing less than 20 % of those living in couple in the same household. The situation 
among young men is similar, showing a slightly hi gher frequency of persons not living as a couple 
(parental house, alone, collective accommodations, etc) or cohabiting. 
In 2005, on average, the head of the household in near ly 10 % of families in the European Union was 
younger than 30 years old. In Spain a nd Italy, however, this share was less than one third of the EU 
average. There is a declining trend in recent ye ars, where the figure dropped by 1.6 percentage points 
within six years (9.6 in 1999 versus 8 % in 2005).  
In terms of size of the household, the EU valu e in 2005 is not far from 1.5 adult equivalents26. The size of 
the household is significantly larger than the EU av erage in Latvia, Portugal, Romania and Bulgaria.  
Young women living in consensual union, with or without legal basis, % of 15-29 year olds in 2005 
192324
12
8722
14 141730
161921 21
172327
20
820
131416
612111212
25
13
62
621
44
13
415
12414
5
6
732427
19
2828
0%5%10%15%20%25%30%35%40%45%50%
EU25 BE CZ DK EE IE EL ES FR IT CY LV LT HU MT NL AT PL PT SI SK FI SE UK IS NOOn a legal basis Without legal basis
 
Note  : BG, DE, IE; LV, RO data not available Source: Eurostat, EU-SILC 
                                                 
26 The household average size is expresse d as “adult equivalent” computed using the modified OECD equivalence 
scale. This scale gives a weight of 1.0 to the first adult, 0.5 to the second and each subsequent person aged 14 and over, and 0.3 to each child aged less than 14 in the household. 
EN 60   EN Young men living in consensual union, with or wi thout legal basis, % of 15-29 year olds in 2005 
1114 14
6
4 48 8 8 715
1112 13
11
91416
12
413
7 710
46898
20
10
61417
239
312
016104
4
431723
16
2119
0%5%10%15%20%25%30%35%40%45%50%
EU25 BE CZ DK EE IE EL ES FR IT CY LV LT HU MT NL AT PL PT SI SK FI SE UK IS NOOn a legal basis Without legal basis
 
4.1.5.  Marital status of young people 
It clearly appears that young people's behaviour to wards marriage differ cons iderably among Member 
States both with regard to inte nsity and age. As a general tre nd, more young people marry in Central 
Europe while marriages in Scandinavia happen wit hout hurry. In all EU Member States, more young 
women than men are married. The reason for this is  that women marry approximately 2-3 years sooner 
than men. In all Member States the majority of marriages occur when the woman is younger than 30, 
except for in Sweden (44 %) and Denmark (49 %). In  Lithuania and Poland almo st 90 out of 100 brides 
are younger than 30. 
In terms of wedding frequency per country for th e age cohort 25-29, the proportion of young married 
women in Romania is three times higher than for Sweden (60 % and 20 % re spectively). Among men, 
the extreme values at the same age can be found in Lithuania and Sweden (42 % and 11 %). For both 
sexes the proportion of young married is higher in Central Europe and the Baltic States. 
Among young people aged 25-29, the divorce rate is marg inal. Only in a few countries does the divorce 
rate reach as high as 5 %.  
EN 61   EN Proportion of young population by marital status, sex and age class (2006) - Eurostat 
%F+M
15-19 20-24 25-29 Total 15-19 20-24 25-29 Total Total
BEMarried 0.8 11.7 36.3 16.7 0.1 4.0 22.7 9.1 12.9
D i v o r c e d 0 . 00 . 42 . 91 . 10 . 00 . 11 . 30 . 50 . 8Singles 99.2 87.9 60.8 82.1 99.9 95.9 76.0 90.4 86.3
CZMarried 0.4 10.8 43.6 20.5 0.1 3.5 26.0 11.2 15.8
D i v o r c e d 0 . 00 . 75 . 12 . 20 . 00 . 22 . 71 . 11 . 7Singles 99.6 88.5 51.2 77.2 99.9 96.3 71.3 87.6 82.5
DEMarried 0.6 10.1 31.5 14.1 0.1 3.6 17.8 7.1 10.6
D i v o r c e d 0 . 00 . 53 . 01 . 20 . 00 . 11 . 50 . 60 . 9
Singles 99.4 89.4 65.4 84.6 99.9 96.3 80.7 92.3 88.5
LV Married 1.1 15.5 39.7 17.9 0.2 7.7 29.0 11.6 14.7
D i v o r c e d 0 . 00 . 74 . 81 . 70 . 00 . 22 . 91 . 01 . 3Singles 98.9 83.7 55.2 80.2 99.8 92.0 68.0 87.4 83.9
LT Married 2.4 22.8 54.4 25.0 0.5 11.7 41.8 16.6 20.7
D i v o r c e d 0 . 01 . 67 . 92 . 90 . 00 . 54 . 71 . 62 . 2Singles 97.6 75.5 37.2 71.9 99.5 87.8 53.4 81.8 76.9
HUMarried 0.8 10.7 38.6 18.5 0.0 3.5 23.1 10.0 14.2
D i v o r c e d 0 . 00 . 64 . 51 . 90 . 00 . 22 . 10 . 91 . 4Singles 99.2 88.6 56.8 79.5 100.0 96.3 74.8 89.1 84.4
NL Married 0.0 9.2 30.2 13.3 0.0 2.9 16.8 6.5 9.9
D i v o r c e d 0 . 00 . 31 . 90 . 70 . 00 . 10 . 70 . 30 . 5Singles 100.0 90.4 67.9 85.9 100.0 97.0 82.5 93.2 89.6
RO Married 3.8 28.7 59.9 31.3 0.2 7.8 40.1 16.6 23.8
D i v o r c e d 0 . 11 . 13 . 81 . 70 . 00 . 21 . 60 . 61 . 1Singles 96.2 70.1 36.0 66.8 99.8 92.0 58.3 82.7 74.9
SI Married 0.0 5.4 25.2 11.1 0.0 1.6 12.4 5.1 8.0
D i v o r c e d 0 . 00 . 11 . 10 . 50 . 00 . 00 . 40 . 20 . 3Singles 100.0 94.5 73.6 88.4 100.0 98.4 87.2 94.7 91.7
SK Married 1.0 17.5 49.7 23.9 0.2 7.5 32.8 14.3 19.0
D i v o r c e d 0 . 00 . 73 . 91 . 60 . 00 . 32 . 00 . 81 . 2Singles 99.0 81.5 46.0 74.3 99.8 92.1 65.1 84.9 79.7
FIMarried 0.5 8.7 31.4 13.6 0.1 4.1 20.4 8.3 10.9
D i v o r c e d 0 . 00 . 52 . 91 . 10 . 00 . 21 . 50 . 60 . 8Singles 99.5 90.8 65.7 85.2 99.9 95.7 78.1 91.2 88.2
SE Married 0.4 6.7 20.2 8.9 0.0 2.3 11.2 4.4 6.6
D i v o r c e d 0 . 00 . 52 . 30 . 90 . 00 . 11 . 10 . 40 . 7
Singles 99.6 92.8 77.5 90.2 100.0 97.6 87.7 95.2 92.8
ISMarried 0.0 4.2 22.0 8.8 0.0 1.4 12.4 4.6 6.6
D i v o r c e d 0 . 00 . 02 . 00 . 70 . 00 . 00 . 90 . 30 . 5Singles 100.0 95.8 75.9 90.5 100.0 98.6 86.7 95.1 92.9
LIMarried0.0 12.4 37.5 17.1 0.0 5.6 21.7 9.3 13.1
D i v o r c e d 0 . 00 . 02 . 50 . 90 . 00 . 01 . 00 . 30 . 6
Singles 100.0 87.6 60.0 82.0 100.0 94.4 77.4 90.4 86.3
CH Married 1.0 14.0 37.1 17.9 0.1 5.8 23.3 9.9 13.9
D i v o r c e d 0 . 00 . 31 . 70 . 70 . 00 . 10 . 80 . 30 . 5Singles 99.0 85.7 61.1 81.3 99.9 94.1 76.0 89.8 85.6FM
EN 62   EN  
4.1.6.  Becoming a parent 
Another frequent key event in a young person's life in the transitiona l phase towards adulthood is the 
experience of becoming parent. This is a landmark ev ent in the life of millions of young persons in the 
EU. Again there are large di fferences between countries.  
Total fertility rate 1980- 2006  
1980 1990 2000 2006
<20 20-24 25-29 30+
B E :: 1 . 6 2:: : : :
BG : : 1.27 1.37 0.21 0.40 0.42 0.35
CZ 2.10 1.89 1.14 1.33 0.05 0.23 0.49 0.55
DK 1.55 1.67 1.77 1.83 0.03 0.22 0.63 0.96
DE : : : 1.32 0.05 0.22 0.42 0.63
EE 2.02 2.05 1.39 1.55 0.11 0.35 0.51 0.58
IE 3.23 2.12 1.90 1.90 0.08 0.24 0.39 1.18
EL : : 1.27 1.39 0.06 0.22 0.42 0.70
ES 2.20 1.36 1.23 1.38 0.06 0.16 0.32 0.83
FR : : 1.89 2.00 0.06 0.32 0.68 0.94
IT 1.68 1.36 1.26 1.32 0.03 0.16 0.36 0.76
CY : 2.40 1.60 1.47 0.03 0.22 0.53 0.69
LV : : 1.24 1.35 0.11 0.35 0.42 0.46
LT : 2.03 1.39 1.31 0.10 0.32 0.47 0.42
LU 1.46 1.60 1.78 1.65 0.05 0.27 0.50 0.83
HU 1.92 1.84 1.33 1.34 0.10 0.24 0.44 0.56
MT 1.99 2.05 1.69 1.41 0.08 0.23 0.48 0.61
NL 1.60 1.62 1.72 1.70 0.03 0.19 0.54 0.94
AT 1.65 1.46 1.36 1.40 0.06 0.26 0.46 0.61
PL 2.28 1.99 1.37 1.27 0.07 0.29 0.46 0.46
PT 2.25 1.57 1.56 1.35 0.08 0.22 0.39 0.65
RO 2.40 1.80 1.30 1.31 0.17 0.35 0.41 0.38
SI 2.11 1.46 1.26 1.31 0.02 0.19 0.50 0.60
SK 2.31 2.09 1.29 1.24 0.10 0.28 0.42 0.44
FI : : 1.73 1.84 0.05 0.29 0.58 0.92
SE 1.68 2.14 1.55 1.85 0.03 0.24 0.57 1.01
UK : : : 1.84 0.13 0.36 0.50 0.85
IS 2.48 2.31 2.08 2.08 0.07 0.40 0.64 0.97
LI : : 1.58 1.42 0.02 0.20 0.28 0.92
NO 1.72 1.93 1.85 1.90 0.05 0.30 0.64 0.92
CH 1.55 1.59 1.50 1.43 0.02 0.19 0.42 0.80
HR : : 1.39 1.38 0.07 0.30 0.48 0.53
MK : : 1.70 1.46 0.10 0.40 0.53 0.43
TR : 3.07 2.27 : : :::2006
TFR
 
Note : IT 2005 Source: Eurostat , Demographic statistics 
The fertility trends over the last decades in Europe  are well known, there has been a sharp decline in the 
total fertility rate far below the replacement level of 2.1 children per woman and an increase in the mean 
age of mothers at first births. Even an additional reduction of mortality risk  among young people and an 
increase of immigration can no longer compensate for this effect. The main results have been structural 
changes in the proportion of young in  the total population. There are different hypotheses for explaining 
this trend, the most frequent being delayed age of departure from parent al home, increased birth control, 
postponed start of employment, unsta ble employment conditions and econ omic hardship. Some of these 
potential links will be examined in the following paragraphs. 
After this long period of decreasi ng fertility across Europe, recent fi gures (from 2000 to 2006) suggest 
that the average number of children per woman is increasing in severa l Member States, in particular 
Sweden (+0.30), Czech Republic (+0.18), Estonia (+0.16) and Spain (+0.15).  
Despite the recent new trend, even th e highest national fertility levels recorded in EU (France at 2.0 and 
Ireland at 1.9), are still under the full replacement leve l if one does not take into account migration flows. 
Looking at time series starting in 1980, one gets a better  picture of the diversity in  the fertility levels in 
Europe. The highest levels in 1980 were observed in Ireland (3.23 children per woman) and Romania 
(2.40). Current values for these countries have fa llen by more than 40 % from 1980 to 2006. The lowest 
EN 63   EN fertility rates, (below 1.4) are regi stered mainly in Central and Southe rn Europe, with the lowest rates 
registered in Slovakia (1.24) and Poland (1.27).  
Mean age of women at first child (1995, 2005) 
1995 2005
BE 27.3 :
BG 22.4 24.7
CZ 23.3 26.6
DK 27.4 28.4DE 27.5 29.1
EE 23.0 25.2
IE 27.3 :
EL 26.6 28.5
ES 28.4 29.3FR : 28.5
IT 28.0 :
CY : 27.5
LV : 25.0
LT 23.1 24.9
LU 27.4 29.0
HU 23.8 26.7NL 28.4 28.9
AT 25.6 27.2
PL 23.8 25.8
PT 25.8 27.4
RO 22.9 24.8SI 24.9 27.7
SK : 25.7
FI 27.2 27.9
SE 27.2 28.7
UK 29.3 30.0
IS 24.9 26.3
NO 26.4 27.7CH 28.1 29.5
HR : 26.5
MK : 25.2
 
Note  : UK 1996, 2006 Source: Eurost at, Demographic statistics  
Looking at the age of the mother at the first ch ildbirth gives further evidence of delayed parenthood. 
Without exception, this age has in creased in all EU Member Stat es during the period 1995-2005. The 
mean age of the mothers at the first childbirth in EU is around 27 years. 
Changes are bigger in the Czech Republic, Hungary an d Slovenia, with an average postponement of birth 
of first child by about 3 years. In absolute terms, how ever, the mother's mean age at first birth is even 
more delayed in the United Kingdom (30 years old)  together with Spain, Germany and Luxembourg, 
where age of mothers at firs t birth is between 29 and 30. 
Italy and Spain have low fertility  rates overall, but especially among young women. Ireland is the only 
country characterised by a fertility ra te above Europe’s average particular ly due to high fertility rates of 
women over 30.
EN 64   EN 4.1.7.  More babies born outside marriage 
Proportion of births outside marriage by country (1996, 2006) 
1996 2006
BE 19 39BG 28 51
CZ 17 33
DK 46 46DE 17 30
EE 48 58
IE 25 33EL 3 5
ES 12 28
FR : 50IT 8 19CY 1 6
LV 33 43
LT 14 30LU 15 29
HU 23 36
MT 3 22NL 17 37
AT 28 37
PL 10 19PT 19 32
RO 21 29
SI 32 47SK 14 27
FI 35 41
SE 54 55UK 36 44
HR 7 11
MK 8 13IS 61 66
LI 10 16
NO 48 53CH 7 15
 
Note: BE: 2007 Source: Eurostat, Demographic statistics 
Over the last decade, the trend in the EU has been  that more and more babies are born outside of 
marriage (37 % in 2006). Differences between Member  States have grown st ronger from 1996 to 2006. 
In some Member States, the number of babies bor n outside of marriage has more than doubled during 
this period. This is the case in Belgium, Spain, Italy, Cyprus, Lithua nia, Malta and the Netherlands.  
In Estonia and Sweden, around 6 children of 10 are bo rn outside marriage, while in Cyprus or Greece 
this proportion is close to one on twenty and less or  equal to one on four in Italy, Poland and Malta. In 
the youngest age group registered (15-19 year olds), the number of births outside marriage exceeds 90 % 
of newborns in Denmark, Ireland and UK, while it is down to 33 % in Greece and less than 15 % in 
Cyprus. Regarding this age group, it is  important to keep in mind that  few persons are married and few 
births are registered. For the age group 25-29, more than 50 % of children are born outside marriage in 
Sweden, Estonia and Denmark. On the opposite side of the spectrum are Greece and Cyprus, with less 
than 4 %.  
EN 65   EN Births outside marriage by age group, % (decreasing order) -2005 
0102030405060708090100
IS EE SE NO IE UK DK FR BG SI LV FI AT ES HU NL PT DE CZ LU RO LT SK MT PL IT LI CH MK HR EL CY% 15-19 20-24 25-29 15-29
 
Note  : BE data not available Source: Eurostat, Demographic statistics  
Results of the KASS project: Kinship and Social Security27 
Patterns of Kinship and Family relations across Europe  
The KASS project measured, through original ethnographic research, the extent of mutual assistance 
between relatives of various generations, and the fact ors which influence it. It considered the role of 
kinship ties in practical and social lif e in terms of three implicit contracts: 
(1) The contract between  successive generations  is a source of practical, emotional and financial support 
– both on a regular basis and as an insurance for times of crisis such as illness, unemployment, divorce 
and bereavement. Support from the grand-parental  generation for their own children’s parenting can 
greatly assist the reconciliation of  parenting and employment, and pe ople in middle and later-middle age 
are an important source of car e for the dependent elderly.  
(2) The contract between  reproductive partners  (and each other’s family of origin) includes the division 
of productive, child-rearing and domestic labour, as well as the ways in which th e partners support each 
other’s social identities. 
(3) The contract with the  community as a whole  goes beyond the formal obligations and rights resulting 
from legal citizenship. It also includes the obligations  and pleasures of participating in social and ritual 
life, in its own right or as a re presentative of one’s family.  
The research has identified two broad ways in whic h the three contracts are combined in contemporary 
Europe, demonstrating and confirming a northwest-southeast and urban-rura l contrasts in kinship patterns 
across Europe. While most of the nineteen comm unities studied fall somewhere between these two 
patterns, they do so in a systematic way, since th e different aspects of the models vary together: 
                                                 
27 The KASS project was funded under the 6th Framew ork Programme of the Euro pean Union (Citizens and 
Governance Programme) and involved 19 research partners from eight European countries (Sweden, Italy, France, 
Germany, Austria, Croatia, Poland and Russia) representing different family/welfare regimes, running from May 2004 – April 2008.– www.eth.mpg.de/kass
.  
EN 66   EN In one combination, typical of northern and western Europe , the contract between the individual and 
society as a whole is direct, the conception of soci ety is geographically quite wide, and family life is 
centred on the reproductive couple. Co-residence  of different adult ge nerations is rare and 
intergenerational ties are relatively down-played – though, neverthele ss, substantial amounts of help flow 
from parents to adult children. This pattern is be tter adapted to modern capitalism, in which most 
families do not own and transmit their own productive capital, and in which each person ideally enters 
the labour market in his or her own right, irrespective of family ties. 
In the other combination, typical of southern and eastern Europe , intergenerational ties are 
emphasised, and the link between re productive partners is correspondin gly down-played. This pattern is 
adapted to family-based production (most notably in agriculture) in which the moral debt of the younger 
generation for the inheritance of the family capital unde rpins the relatively high st atus of members of the 
older generation. Features of this model are highly dist inct gender roles, a concep tion of social identity in 
which the individual relates to the community at large as a member of an extended family, and a 
community that is geographically concentrated e nough for each individual’s family background to be 
generally known. Intergenerationa l co-residence (or close residenc e) is common, and allows for 
extensive flows of help in both directions.  
Throughout these regimes ties with kin are more  reliable practically than ti es with friends and neighbours. 
Old people usually have a rather lo w position in the welfare pr iorities of families themselves, because they 
generally favour provision for the young. State s upport (in particular pensions) is therefore vi tal. Moreover, 
state support for the elderl y enables the latter to be  net givers to their descendants in the family. 
Because old people are likely to pass some of the result ing income to younger family members, there will be 
additional knock-on benefits to young er family members, which will themse lves entail recipr ocal help to the 
old people. The overall effect is thus  likely to include some strengthen ing of family relationships (i.e. a 
‘crowding in’ effect). 
KEY FIGURES RELATING TO LIFESTYLES OF YOUNG PEOPLE 
• Mean age to enter into a first marriage: 27,3years 
• Mean age to leave parental home: 25 years 
• 24,5 % of young people (15-29) live in th e same household as their partner 
• Mean age of mothers at the first childbirth: around 27 years  
• 37 % babies born outside marriage 
4.2. Youth and Health 
Much of the data serving as background informa tion for young people and health relates to the age 
groups 15 – 24 and 25 – 34. Available data on youth an d health are mostly li nked to international 
programmes and policies against diseas es, unhealthy lifestyles or for redu cing mortality rates - particular 
at the European level. 
EN 67   EN USEFUL CONCEPTS AND DEFINITIONS 
The crude death rate  describes mortality in relation to the total population. Expressed in per 100,000 
inhabitants, it is calculated as th e number of deaths reco rded in the population fo r a given period divided 
by population in the same period and then mu ltiplied by 100,000. The population structure strongly 
influences this indicator for broad age classes. In a relatively ‘old' population, th ere will be more deaths 
than in a ‘young' one because mortal ity is higher in higher age groups. 
A transport accident  is any accident involvi ng a device designed primarily fo r, or being used at the time 
primarily for, conveying persons or  goods from one place to another. 
A traffic accident  is any vehicle accident occurring on the public highway [i.e. originating on, 
terminating on, or involving a vehicle partially on the highway] . A vehicle accident is assumed to have 
occurred on the public highway un less another place is specified, except in the case of accidents 
involving only off-road motor vehicles, which are clas sified as non-traffic accident s unless the contrary is 
stated. 
Intentional self-harm  implies purposely self-inflicted poisoning or injury and suicide (attempted). It also 
includes intentional self-poisoning by drugs and alc ohol, intentional self-poisoning by and exposure to 
organic solvents and halogenated hydrocarbons and their vapours, intentiona l self-poisoning by and 
exposure to other gases and vapours, intentional self -poisoning by and exposure to pesticides, intentional 
self-poisoning by and exposure to other and unspeci fied chemicals and noxious  substances, by hanging, 
strangulation and suffocation, by drowning and submersion, intentiona l self-harm by handgun discharge, 
intentional self-harm by rifle, shot gun and larger firearm discharge, by other and unspecified firearm 
discharge, by explosive material, by smoke, fire and flames, by steam, hot vapours and hot objects, harm 
by sharp object, by blunt object, by jumping from a high place, by jumping or lying before moving 
object, by crashing of motor vehicle, by other specified means and by unspecified means. 
Suicide  is the act of deliberately killing oneself. Risk factors for suicide in clude mental disorder (such as 
depression, personality disorder, al cohol dependence, or schizophrenia ), and some physical illnesses, 
such as neurological disorders, cance r, and HIV infection. There are effe ctive strategies and interventions 
for the prevention of suicide. 
Drug dependence as a cause of de ath comprises the following items : mental and behavioural disorders 
due to use of opioids, cannabinoids, sedatives,  hypnotics, cocaine, hallucinogens, volatile solvents, 
multiple drug use and other psychoactive substances or stimulants, including caffeine. This category also 
includes situations when two or more psychoactive substances are known to be involved, but it is 
impossible to assess which substance is  contributing most to the disorders. It is also used when the exact 
identity of some or even all the psychoactive substances being used is uncertain or unknown, since many 
multiple drug users themselves often do not know the details of what they are taking. 
Source: WHO Classification of death causes 
EN 68   EN 4.2.1.  Young people expect to live longer 
Economic development and the improvement of health  systems across Europe have led to a continuous 
increase in life expectancy at birth . As a result, life expectancy in the EU is higher that in most countries 
in the world: Female (80.7 years)  usually lives longer than men ( 74 years) in the European Union 
(Source: Eurostat -2006). 
With an average life expectancy of 81,1 and 81 year s, Spain and Sweden are th e countries where one can 
expect to live longest in the EU-27, followed by France(80,9), Cyprus (80,6), Austria (80,1) and 
Nederland (80). In some of the new Member States the life expectancy rate is significantly lower than the 
average, with Latvia and Lithuania with the shortest  life expectancy at 71 years. Women generally live 
longer than men in the European Un ion, with an average lif e expectancy of 80.7 year s, as compared to 74 
years for men.  
4.2.2.  Young Europeans perceive themselves as healthy 
Many physical and physiological changes occur during adolescence. These changes have an impact on 
the body and on how young people percei ve themselves. The relationshi p between body image and self-
esteem is well established; It is usually stronger in gi rls. Gender differences are also apparent in the ways 
in which young men and women assess their bodies.  
Europeans tend to self perceive their own health  more negatively with age except in Ireland, the 
Netherlands and UK where more peopl e say there feel in “very good” health when they are aged 25-34 
than those aged 15-24. On the average, people aged 25-34 defined themselves as in “good” or “fair” 
health. Most young people also report a high level of mental well-being.  
Differences across countries are difficu lt to analyse since the perception of one’s health is closely linked 
to socio-cultural factors. In 2006, close to 90 % of young Greeks aged between 15 and 24 considered 
themselves to be in “very good he alth” while when the same ques tion is asked to young people in 
Portugal and Latvia, the percentage remains below 10 %. Cyprus and Sl ovakia had the highest scores of 
respondents replying that they were in  “very bad health”, with 2 %.  
Nevertheless, some two million young people in the Eu ropean Region of the World Health Organization 
(WHO) suffer from mental disord ers ranging from depression, conduct disorders, anxiety disorders or 
eating disorders to schizophrenia. One fifth of ch ildren and adolescents suffer from developmental, 
emotional or behavioural problems, and one in eight have a mental disorder28. 
4.2.3.  Young people and their weight 
Excessive weight has a negative impact on a person's health – both in the short term as well as in the long 
term. The World Health Organisation (WHO) has classified obesity as a major public health concern and 
a “global epidemic”  due to its high and in creasing prevalence and challenge to long-term health. There is 
also a rising concern for young people’s underweight, often due to dieting a nd other weight control 
methods. Often, weight problems are a symptom of negative physical and psychological self-images of 
young people. 
There seem to be in particular  two factors that have had an impact on young people's increasing body 
weight. First, eating habits have  changed. Causes of ch anging eating habits among young people can be 
of a social, cultural and family-connected nature , but it may also be that young people are more 
influenced by their peers, new popular lifestyles and/ or an ever expanding numb er of new products. More 
                                                 
28 Consensus Paper "Mental Health in Youth and Education" (2008) 
EN 69   EN meals, often unhealthy take-away dishes or fast f oods, are being consumed out side the home or the 
school than ever before. Young people are influenced by a still growing and often aggressive advertising 
market. 
Secondly, young people's increasing body weight is also caused by a growi ng inactivity among youth. A 
culture of inactivity among groups of  young people developed in the last century as a result of the 
development and availability of new technology: the massive expansion and availability of private cars 
has reduced the physical ac tivity levels among youth. The same goes for television sets and the number 
of TV-channels in an average private home as well as  the personal computer a nd electronic games of all 
kinds. In addition, the number of hours that an average young pers on spends doing school homework has 
increased, which further limits the time available to active leisure-time pursuits.  
In almost two thirds of EU Member States, the ove rweight population counts for more than one third of 
the population aged 25-34. Countries with the highest  scores are Germany (42.7 %), Malta (47.8 %) and 
the United Kingdom (53.1 %)29.  
A large number of young people aged 15-24 are also concerne d: around 17 % of them are in a situation 
of overweight or obesity. In Malta,  33.9 % of young people ar e reported to be overwe ight or obese, while 
in the UK it is 31 %, in  Germany 26.5 % and in Ire land 25.8 %. The lowest levels of overweight young 
people aged 15-24 are registered in Latvia (10 %),  Slovakia (10.3 %) and France (10.6 %). The share of 
young people aged 24-34, who show overweight or obesi ty is double compared to  the age 15-24 (34%). 
A gender analysis shows that men are more overweight  than women: there are more than 50 % of men 
aged 25-34 who are overweight or obese in Ge rmany, Greece, Hungary, Malta, Austria, Slovakia, 
Finland and the United Kingdom, wh ile the percentage of women never gets above 50 % of the 
population.  
Around 9% of young people aged 15-24 ar e in a situation of  underweight. The shar e of people being 
underweight is lower among 25-34 year-olds (less than 5 %). 
The highest level of underweight young people is in  the United Kingdom (16.8 %), followed by France 
(15.9 %), Austria (14.5 %), Slovakia (13.9 %) and Latvia (13.6 %). The percentage of women in the 
underweight category is much hi gher for young women than for youn g men except in Austria (3.5 % 
more men) and in the UK (about equal numbers). 
Globally speaking, nearly one third of young Europ eans aged 15-24 are affect ed by weight troubles 
overall, but the numbers differ greatly by country. 
4.2.4.  Majority of young people di e due to external factors 
Causes of death are different according to the each age group. A majority of people over 45 years die 
because of cancer, circulatory or respiratory dis eases, whereas young people fall victim to external 
factors, such as transport accidents, accidental falls, intentional self-harm and assault.
                                                 
29 Data from Germany and UK are based on measured height and weight, while in other countries the height and weight 
were self-reported; UK data cover only England. 
EN 70   EN Causes of death of young people: number of cases by main external factors,  
by sex and age group, 2006 
 Women Men 
  
 
Causes of 
death EU-27 
number of 
cases 
(all ages) 15-19 20-24 25-29 15-19 20-24 25-29 15-19 20-24 25-29 
 
Suicide and 
intentional 
harm 58527  1478  2731  3132  326 433 544 1152  2298  
 2588  
Transport 
Accidents 49688  4285  5821  4654  1003  1016  730 3282  
 4805  3924  
Accidental 
Poisoning 11010  188 621 816 71 112 113 117 509 703 
AIDS (HIV 
disease) 5833  122 74 222 49 31 81 73 43 141 
 
Homicide, 
assault 5402  184 378 462 53 87 116 131 291 346 
 
Drug 
dependence, 
toxicomania 2878 105 318 443 26 56 57 79 262 386 
 
Source: Eurostat-Health-Causes of death  
In 2006, more than 12 000 young men aged 15-29 died as  a result of transport accidents in the EU. 
Intentional self harm (and suicide) was the seco nd most common cause of death for young people aged 
between 15 and 29. In 2006, more than 7 000 young pe ople committed suicide in the EU, 82 % of whom 
were young men. 
Drug consumption and addiction were also a signi ficant cause of death: in the EU, 1 625 young people 
aged 15-29 died because of accidental poisoni ng and 866 died because of drug dependence. 
Homicide and assault also accounted for a substantial share of fatalities (1 024 deaths), especially among 
young men aged between 20 and 29. 
4.2.4.1.  Death due to transport accidents  
Traffic crashes are a major external  cause of death in young people and the single greatest killer of 15 to 
24 year olds in OECD countries. 21.1% of people k illed in road accidents in 2005 in the 18 European 
countries were aged 16-24 and the majority of them  were drivers (4 279 pers ons), whereas only 484 were 
pedestrians. Drivers 16-24 year old ha ve risk factors 2 to 3 times highe r than more experienced drivers. 
They pose a greater risk to themselves and to ot hers: in young driver crashes, for each young driver 
killed, about 1.3 others also die (e .g. passengers and other road user s). Source: CARE Database / EC- 
Date of query: December 2007.  
EN 71   EN Proportion of young people in population and in traffic fatali ties in the EU, 2006  
 
Source: CARE Database / EC 
Date of query: September 2008 
Source of population data: EUROSTAT  
In 2006, more than 12 000 young men aged 15-29 died as  a result of transport accidents in the EU. 
Amongst young people, males account for the majority of the overall fatalities (88,5 fatality rate in 
2005). 
In 2006, Lithuania and Greece recorded the highest transport accident death rates for young men aged 
20-24, followed by Estonia and Slovenia . All these countries registered crude death rates well above the 
EU average. The countries with the lowest death rates were the Netherlands, Finland and Sweden. 
The number of fatalities linked to transport accident s generally tends to decrease with age, except in 
Cyprus and Hungary, where transport fatalities am ong men aged 25-29 were mo re frequent than among 
men aged 20-24.  
Transport accidents are often linke d to other risky behaviours of young people such as drunkenness and 
drug abuse.   
4.2.4.2.  Death due to suicide 
At EU level, the crude death ra te by suicide among the male popul ation aged 25-29 stood at 15 per 100 
000 inhabitants. The Baltic States an d Finland registered the highest male  suicide and self-i nflicted injury 
rates for people aged between 20 and 29. 
es among young people. Women tend to be less affected  by suicide and intentiona l self harm, with crude 
death rates generally lower than 6 per 100 000 inhab itants, but the incidence of non-fatal self-harm, 
which is estimated to be 10-40 times more common than  that of actual suicide, is common also among 
female adolescents. 
EN 72   EN 4.2.4.3. Death due to drugs 
Within the European Union, deaths related to  drug dependence remained on average below 2 
per 100 000 inhabitants in 2006. Th e highest death rates were found in Austria, Ireland and 
the United Kingdom. In 2005-2006, dr ug-inflicted deaths accounted for 3.5 % of all deaths of 
Europeans aged 15-39. Opium-based products were found in around 70 % of them (2008 
EMCDDA annual report). 
4.2.4.4. Death due to AIDS/HIV 
Number of deaths caused by AIDS, by age group -2005 
 TOTAL Y15_19 Y20_24 Y25_29 
EU27 5998 139 62 212 
Source : Eurostat-Population 
Share of young people diagnosed with HIV, by age group, 2006  
% of HIV cases broken down by age (15-19,20-24,25-29)  % of HIV cases among 15-29 on 
the total of HIV case (all known 
ages)  15-19 20-24 25-29 
EU-27 : 27.7 6.9 32.8 60.3 
Source : Eurostat-Population 
Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) affects all generations. Governments have 
taken action in order to combat and avoid its sp reading. In spite of education and information 
campaigns, however, Europe still sees a consid erable number of new HIV infections every 
year. 
HIV/AIDS is still considered a serious h ealth concern across th e EU. In 2006, 27.7 % of 
newly-diagnosed HIV cases inside the Uni on concerned young people aged between 15 and 
29. Within this age group, young people 25-29 a ccounted for 60.3 % of new cases, while for 
the age group 20-24 and 15-19 the rates were 32.8 % and 6.9 %, respectivel y. This is however 
not the case in Bulgaria and Estonia, where th e largest share was identified among 20-24 year 
olds. 
In the age group 15-29, some discrepancies were registered between country patterns and the 
EU average of 27.7. This age group comprised of  more than 70 % of newly-diagnosed HIV 
cases in Estonia in 200 6, while the numbers are 50 % in Bu lgaria, Cyprus, Latvia, Romania 
and Slovakia. The lowest shares of newly-di agnosed HIV cases were found in Denmark (20 
%) and France (22 %).  
The most common modes of HIV transmission include heterosexual sex, men who have sex 
with men (MSM) and injection drug users (IDU) . In the EU, 54 % of newly diagnosed cases 
in 2006 within the age range 15-29 involved he terosexual relations, followed by MSM (35 %) 
and IDU (10 %). However, this varies from one country to another: in Germany, Greece, 
Hungary, Slovenia and Slovakia, MSM was the most common mode of transmission, while in 
Bulgaria, Lithuania, Latvia, Poland and Po rtugal IDU accounted for the majority of 
EN 73   EN transmission cases. Other modes of transmissi on, such as blood transfusions, accounted for 4 
% of newly diagnosed cases in Belg ium and 6 % of cases in Romania. 
The European Centre for the Epidemiol ogical Monitoring of AIDS–EuroHIV 
(HIV/AIDS Surveillance in Europe) coordinates the surveillance of HIV/AIDS in the WHO 
European Region (5 countries). Its mission is  to understand, improve and share European 
HIV/AIDS surveillance data in order to better inform disease prevention, control and care. Its 
objectives include making international comparisons , assessing trends, characterising affected 
populations and predicting disease burden  and evaluating surveillance methods. 
4.2.5.  Youth attitudes toward smoking 
WHO has identified tobacco smoking as the lead ing cause of premature illness and death in 
developed countries, responsible for more than  14 % of all deaths in the WHO European 
Region in 2005 (WHO – Europe Heath report – 2005). Although the vast majority of smoking 
related deaths occur among middle aged an d elderly people, smoking behaviours are 
undeniably acquired well before.  
Young daily smokers may acquire the habit and become addicted before reaching adulthood, 
making them less able to quit and more likely  to suffer from tobacco-related health 
complications. The longer the onset of smoking is delayed, th e less likely a person is to 
become addicted. 
According to estimates, half of all new male adolescent smokers will not kick the habit for at 
least 16 years, while young women will not gi ve up for at least 20 years (WHO – Europe 
Health Report – 2005). 
The total proportion of smokers increases with age and there are, generally speaking, more 
daily smokers between the age of  25 and 34 than betw een the ages of 15 and 24. However this 
was not the case in Ireland and Hungary, wh ere young smokers outnumbered their older 
counterparts. Sweden registered rather posi tive figures regarding young smokers, followed by 
Slovakia: in both countries, less than 20 % of the population aged between 15 and 34 are daily 
smokers, but this proportion increases when considering the 45-55 age group. In contrast, 
Bulgaria counted the highest shares of smoke rs (31 % for the population aged 15-24 and half 
of the population aged 25-34, followed by Estonia,  where two-thirds of men aged 25-34 are 
regular smokers. Ireland is the only country wh ere the share of smokers  decreases with age. 
Considering the distribution of sm okers by gender, it can be said  that in Europe men are more 
likely to be smokers. Only in Sweden and the United Kingdom the share of female smokers aged 15-24 was higher than that of their male counterparts, although this no longer holds true 
for older generations (except for Sweden) 
 
4.2.6.  Youth attitudes towards drinking 
Aside from being influenced by various social f actors, adolescents also  engage in drinking 
alcohol on the basis of their pe rsonal beliefs and goals, as we ll as their family or social 
environment. Alcohol may also facilitate interaction and making new friends, increase 
perceived popularity or influence young people’s image among their peers.  
As a general pattern, Europeans have their firs t spell of drunkenness betw een the ages of 13 or 
14 in all countries for which data  are available. As a rule, gi rls tend to ha ve their first 
hangover at a marginally later age than boys. On average, th e earliest episodes of drunkenness 
EN 74   EN were registered in Austria, while in Mediterr anean countries, such as Greece, Spain, Italy and 
Portugal the starting age was slightly higher. 
In most countries considered, more than 80 % of young Europeans ag ed 17-18 years have 
consumed alcohol over the past 12 months, with  Denmark and the Czech Republic registering 
the highest shares (95 %). This was followed by Lithuania (9 4 %), Germany, Austria (93 %), 
Greece and the United Kingdom (91 %). Converse ly, the lowest shares of youths having 
consumed alcohol over the past  12 months were found in Po rtugal (74 %) and Sweden (77 
%).  
In around half of the countries for which da ta are available, more than 50 % of young 
Europeans aged 17-18 have been drunk at least once in the past 12 months. Denmark 
accounted the highest rates of drunkenness amon g youths (82 %), followed by Ireland (72 %). 
In contrast, only 25 % of young people in Cyprus  and 29 % in France admitted to having been 
drunk in the past 12 months. 
First episode of drunkenness 
1212.51313.51414.515
BE CZ DK DE EE IE EL ES FR IT LV LT HU MT NL AT PL PT SI FI SE UK NO CHGirls
Boys
 
Source WHO: Young people’s health in context  
EUROPEAN SCHOOL SURVEY ON  ALCOHOL AND OTHER DRUGS  
(ESPAD) 
In the 1980s, the group of experts in epidemio logy of drug problems of the Pompidou Group 
at the Council of Europe commissioned a team of investigators to develop a  standardised 
school survey questionnaire. The purpose was  to produce a standard su rvey instrument which 
would  allow different countries to compare alcohol and drug use  in student populations in 
different countries.  A main goal of the ESPAD project is to collect comparable  data on 
alcohol, tobacco and drug use among students  aged between 15 and 1 in as many European 
countries  as possible through a survey. The survey is  carried out every four years The most 
important goal in the long run is to  monitor trends in alcohol and drug habits among students  
in Europe and to compare trends between countries and  between groups of countries. Since 
EN 75   EN 1994, ESPAD has issued four international re ports on alcohol and other drug use among 
students. The most recent report dates from March 2009.  
4.2.7.  Youth attitudes towards drugs 
Cannabis is the most popular drug among young people aged 15-34. The highest levels of use 
are generally being reported among 15-24 year s old (EMCDA 2008). Estimates suggest that 
around 23 million European adults have used canna bis in the last year producing an average 
figure of about 7 % among all 15 to 64 year olds while among young adults age 25-34 the 
European average is calculated at 13 % (ranging from 2-20 % between countries).  
Based on data for 13 countries that participat ed a second field trial on the frequency of 
cannabis use, it is roughly estimated that over 1 % of European adults (15-64 years) are using 
cannabis daily or almost daily (about 4 milli on). Most of them (about 3 million) are aged 
between 15 and 34 years, meaning roughly 2 to 2.5 % of all young adults. In countries such as 
the Czech Republic, Spain, France, Italy and the United Kingdom, more than 16 % of young 
persons admit to use it.  
Cocaine remains the second most used substance after cannabis, although its use is not 
uniform across Europe (national figures range  from 0.4 % to 7.7 %). For young adults, among 
those cocaine use is concentrated, it is estimated that 7.5 million have used it at least once (ranging from 0.7 % to 12.7 % between countries). It is estimated that 4 million have used it 
in the past year (1.2 % on average). Variat ion between countries is  again considerable. 
In 2005, cocaine  consumption was quite high in Spain (5  %) and the United Kingdom (5 %), 
but well behind the consumption of cannabis. 
Among young adults (15-34 years), lifetime prevalence of ecstasy  use ranges at national level 
from 0.5 % to 14.6 % while between 0.4 % and 7.7 % of this age group  reported using the 
drug in the last year. On average, it is estimated that 7.5 million young Europeans (5.6 %) have tried ecstasy, with around 2.5 million (1.8  %) having used the drug in the last year. 
Consumption remained high in the C zech Republic and the United Kingdom. 
Among young adults (15-35 year olds), lifetim e prevalence of amphetamine use varies 
between countries, from 0.2 % to 16.5 %, with a European average of about 5 %. 
Bulgaria and Mediterranean countries such as  Greece, Cyprus and Malta accounted for the 
lowest levels of drug consumption in Europe. 
EN 76   EN The reasons why young people try drugs are shown in the table below. 
0 1 02 03 04 05 06 07 0CuriosityPeer PressureThrill seekingProblems at homeExpected effects of drugs RecreationProblems at school/WorkLonelinessSocial or economic problemsLack of will power
2002
2004
 
Source: Eurobarometer,  n°158 
“Young people and drugs”-“Why do young Europeans experiment with drugs?”  
EUROPEAN MONITORING CENTER  FOR DRUGS AND DRUG ADDICTION 
(EMCDDA ) 
Just over a decade ago, Europe’s capacity for monitoring its drug problem was extremely 
limited. National approaches to the topic varied greatly and there was a lack of reliable and 
comparable information at European level concerning drugs, drug  addiction and their 
consequences. In other words, it was impossibl e to talk with confidence about patterns and 
trends in drug use across the EU. The Europ ean Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug 
Addiction (EMCDDA) was founded to change that. 
Inaugurated in Lisbon in 1995, the EMCDDA is the hub of drug-related information in the 
European Union. It exists to pr ovide the EU and its Member Stat es with a factua l overview of 
European drug problems and a common information framework to support the drugs debate. 
Today it offers policy-makers the scientific ev idence base they need for drawing up drug laws 
and strategies and helps profe ssionals and researchers pinpoint best practice and new areas for 
analysis. 
In 2004, according to the Eurobarometer surve y, more than 60 % of young people think that 
curiosity remains the chief reason for trying drugs, a little more than 45 % invoke peer 
pressure and nearly 40 % thri ll seeking. Less than one thir d of respondents consider that 
young people try drugs on account of problems at home. Problems at school or work were 
also invoked by less than one fifth of respondents as a reason to experiment with drugs. Loneliness, together with social or economic  problems, were given as a reason for trying 
drugs by around 15 % of young Europeans. 
EN 77   EN According to Eurobarometer 2004, young Europeans aged between 15 and 24, getting hold of 
drugs does not seem to be difficult. This acqui sition mainly concerns places where people go 
out in the evening. In 2004, 79 % of young respondent s tended to agree that  it is easy to get 
drugs at parties, compared with 76 % in pubs or clubs, 63 % near their home and 57 % in or 
near school. 
As stated by European youths in the Eurobaro meter survey, parties and clubs seem to the 
most convenient place to purchase drugs. For 92 % of young Spanish inte rviewed, parties are 
the easiest place for getting drugs. In Belgium,  Greece, Italy, the Netherlands and Portugal 
young people consider drugs are more readily ava ilable in pubs and clubs . In Ireland, 78 % of 
respondents feel that they have easy access to dr ugs close to where they live. This contrasts 
with Finland and Sweden, where buying drugs near the home is not deemed to be easy. 
According to respondents, drug dealing also seems to be ri fe in schools and colleges, 
especially in France, Spain, Greece and Portugal. 
KEY FIGURES REGARDING HEALTH 
• Life expectancy of young people is 80;7  years for girls, 74 years for boys. 
• Around 2 million young people have mental health problems  
• 17 % of young people aged 15-24 are overweight 
• 9% of young people aged 15-24 are underweight 
• 60% of deaths in young people aged 15-29 are due to external causes  
• 14 760 young people aged 15-29 died by transport accident  
• 7341 young people aged 15-29 died by suicide 
• 2246 young people aged 15-29 died by drug abuse 
• 1024 young people aged 15-29 died by homicide or assault 
• 467 young people aged 15-29 died due to AIDS/HIV 
• 24 % of young people aged 15-29 smoke daily 
• First spell of drunkenness is between 13 and 14 
• 13 % of young people aged 25-34 use cannabis 
EN 78   EN  
4.3. Young people and leisure time  
4.3.1.  Free time decreases with age  
Broadly speaking, leisure time is a period when  young people choose what they want to do 
with people they want to be with. Young people’ s leisure time is sometimes associated with 
potential risky behaviours (drinking, smoking or violence, etc.) but also constitutes 
opportunities to play, relax and learn through informal learning and development (i.e. out of 
the academic framework). As confirmed by res earch conducted by the United Nations leisure 
time is important in helping young people achiev e a broad range of positive outcomes, both 
social, emotional, vocational, physical, cogn itive and civic development and engagement. 
These positive outcomes may have an impact on both personal and community development. 
When people get older, the percentage of free tim e decreases while there is a progressive shift 
from study to working time. Indeed, in nearly al l countries for which da ta is available, young 
people aged between 15 and 19 year enjoy free tim e during more than 20 % of their total time. 
This share decreases by at least 24 % in all co untries when considering people aged between 
30 and 49. Some differences across countries exist. In Bulgaria, France and the United 
Kingdom, the youngest people (aged between 15 a nd 19) have less than 20 % of their total 
time free whereas in Germany, more than one qua rter of a normal day is made of free time 
activities. 
Young people are not very concerned with house hold work. The percentage of time devoted 
to household work among those aged 30 and 49 is  more than double that  of the youngest age 
category.  
Watching TV is quite popular in  all age ranges (people spend fr om 5 % to 10 % of their time 
in front of the TV). 
4.3.2.  Leisure time activities among 15-30 year olds  
The following figures are derived from a Eurobarometer survey on young people and leisure 
time.  
What young people do during their leisure time w ill depend on different factors such as their 
own interests and imagination, the kind of fac ilities available in their neighbourhood and their 
available budget. 
EN 79   EN Source: 
FLASH EB 202
January 2007
GALLUPActivities during leisure time
Q3. What do you regularly do during your leisure time?
Base: all respondents
% of ”Mentioned”45
40
25
21
19
17
16
10
7
4
4
2
19Go for a walk, a bike ride, sport
Meet friends, go dancing, go out to drink, to eat
Read
Use the Internet, play video games
Watch TV
Listen to music
Go to the cinema, theatre or concerts
Help out in the house
Go shopping
Play an instrument
Do some work for money
Participating in voluntary or community work
OTHER
 
Practicing sport  (either going for a walk, a bi ke ride or any other spor ts) and going out to meet 
friends, to dance, to drink or eat are the main activities young Eu ropeans do during their 
leisure time. 45 % of them declared that they practice sports and 40 % declared that they go 
out with friends. Reading is still a common ente rtainment for one fourth of young Europeans. 
Using the Internet, playing vide o games and watching TV interest  one fifth of them. Listening 
to music and going to the cinema and the theatr e are also popular leis ure activities for more 
than 15 % of young people. Helping out in th e house (10 %) and goi ng shopping (7 %) are 
less popular among young European youth. 
Less than 5 % of young Europeans d eclare that they do some work  for money or to play an 
instrument whereas participati on in voluntary or community wo rk is mentioned by only 2 % 
of people aged between 15 and 30 (see chapter on volunteering). 
Young Europeans tend to participate more in arti stic activities than th eir elders. Photography 
and films are the preferred ac tivities of young Europeans interv iewed aged 15-24, followed by 
dancing and singing. A rather large percenta ge of young people (23 %) also enjoy writing, 
singing and playing an instrume nt, which is more than the older generations. Acting, on the 
other hand, is not a very popular activity (less than 10 % of youth surveyed has practiced it in 
the last 12 months). Leisure time is also the time for young people to get together and take 
part in activities such as going to the cinema, live performances and live sports.  
Although the access to f ilms at home has increased th rough Internet, DVDs and video 
equipment, young people are still enjoying to go out to watch movies on a large screen: at 
European level, more than 82 % of youth aged between 16 and 24 went to the cinema at least 
once a year. For the 25-29 age group this wa s reduced to 58 % and down to nearly 39 % 
among people aged 30 and over.  
EN 80   EN The proportion of young people going to the cinema  varies across countri es and depends on 
various factors: the density of cinema screens in  a country, the price of cinema tickets and the 
movie programming. Young people in Latvia and Lithuania go less to the cinema with 42 % 
and 37 % respectively of those aged 16-24. A majority of thos e aged 25 - 29 in these two 
countries did not watch a movie at the cinema in the past year. The numbers are radically 
different in some other countries, with more  than one third of young people aged 16-24 
reporting that they go to the cine ma more than six times a year 
4.3.3.  Attending cultural events 
Attending live performance does not only mean going to music festivals but also to watch 
plays, operas, ballet and dance performances performed by professionals or amateurs. Among 
young people this is less popular than going to th e cinema, but a majority of them enjoyed a 
live performance at least once in 2006 ex cept for in Italy, Malta and Poland.  
Attendance at live events depe nds on their variety and quality. They may also be more 
expensive than going to the cinema, which can at  least partly explain why the difference in 
participation at live events is much less between age groups than  for going to the cinema. For 
instance, in Belgium, Denmar k, the Netherlands, Austria, Finland, Sweden and the United 
Kingdom, the proportion of 25-29 year olds having attended one to six live performances in 
the last year is higher than for 16-24 y ear olds. Austrian young people attend live 
performances more often than any other EU Member State: around 19 % of the 16 to 24 year 
olds attend live performances more than 6 times a year.  
4.3.4.  Attending live sports events  
In more than half of the EU Member States, a majority of people aged 16-24 had not attended 
a live sporting event in the last year, in dependent on whether it was performed by 
professionals or amateurs (includi ng one’s own children or siblings). 
In 2006, around 20 % of young people (aged 16-24) from the Czech Republic, Germany, 
Estonia, Greece, France, Italy, Lithuania, Po land, Portugal, Slovakia, Finland, Sweden, and 
the United Kingdom went to live sports events from 1 to 3 times a year. But in Denmark 
(15 %), Ireland (21.6 %), Luxembourg ( 18.2 %) and Slovakia (17.2 %) a significant 
proportion of people aged from 16 to 24 went on average more than every month to watch 
live sports. In Malta, 76 % of young people ag ed 16-24 did not watch any live sport events 
during the whole year 2006. The same was true  for more than 60  % of young Greeks, 
Hungarians and young people from the UK. 
4.3.5.  Cultural visits  
Cultural visits are less frequent for bot h young and old compared to cinema and live 
performances. In nearly half of the European countries, more  than 50 % of the population, 
regardless of age, never went  on a cultural visit in 2006.  
In average, 41.% of young people aged 16-29 years vis ited cultural sites at  least once a year. 
In more than half of the EU Member Stat es, young people aged 16-24 visited cultural sites 
between one and six times in 2006. However, there is no information on whether such visits were done through personal initia tive or through school visits . Hungary, Austria and Finland 
show respectively 17 %, 16 % and 15 % of peopl e aged 16 to 24 going more than 6 times to 
cultural visits in a year. In Spain and Luxemb ourg, more than 10 % of  people aged between 
25 and 29 undertake cultural visits  more than 6 times a year. 
EN 81   EN 4.3.6.  Travels and tourism 
Europe and Europeans are keys actors in th e global tourism market: Europe is the most 
important tourism region, both as a destination and as a source. In spite of  the steady fall in its 
market share over the last ten years as a c onsequence of the dramatic growth of dynamic 
regions such as Asia (especia lly South Asia), Europe still maintains its leading position. 
Harmonised data on youth travellers and touris m are difficult to interpret since data on 
tourism by age does not show if young people tr avelled with or without their parents or 
whether they financed their own trip. Moreover,  new ways of travelling have recently made 
travel easier and cheaper for young people: travel information and access to travel agencies is 
simplified through the Internet, low cost carriers charge less a nd less rigid border structures 
have helped younger generations to  get to know the world better. 
New holiday patterns are emerging, forcing pub lic and private tourism operators to develop 
new tourism products and services and to rethin k their marketing and promotional strategies. 
Young people today go more frequently on holiday trips, but trips are of a shorter duration 
than before. In part, the increase in travel fr equency and shorter stays has been stimulated by 
the spread of low-cost airline travel, which wa s identified as one of the main drivers of 
tourism growth in Europe in 2006. 
Broadly speaking, the age distribution of people who travel on holiday corresponds 
approximately to the age distri bution of the total population. In  most European countries for 
which data are available, young people aged 15-24 account for less than 20 % of the total 
number of holiday-travellers (i.e. those who spent four ni ghts or more on holidays). The 
Baltic States, Poland, Slovenia and Sweden ar e exceptions, with a higher share of young 
travellers (between 20 % and 30 %) as part of the travelling popula tion. Younger travellers 
aged 15-24 represent the lowest share in Cyprus (11 %) and France (12 %). 
For nearly all countries, there is almost no di fference between age groups when it comes to 
holiday destinations. Holidays abroad are most popular for people living in Belgium, 
Denmark, Germany, Lithuania, Slovenia, and the United Kingdom, whereas domestic 
holidays are most common for ma ny Mediterranean or southern  European countries (Greece, 
Spain, France, Italy, Portugal) as well as Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Finland.  
4.3.7.  Culture: united in diversity 
The European Union is primarily an economic,  legal and political integration project. 
However, it is also perceived as “…an unpr ecedented and successful social and cultural 
project”.30 Its successive enlargements have led to  an increase of diversity within the 
European area and the Union has proved its abili ty to respect Member States’ varied and 
intertwined history, languages and cultures. 
Young people under 30 years old c onstitute the first generation that lived in an enlarged 
European Union and that benefit from the f ours freedoms (free movement of goods, services, 
people and finance). Indeed, “United in Diversity ,” the official motto of the European Union, 
testifies to the new melting pot which young Europeans are living in. 
                                                 
30 Communication from the commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the C ommittee of the 
Regions on a European agenda for culture in a globalizing world {Sec(2007) 570}. 
EN 82   EN 'Culture' is complex to define, as it can both re fer to the fine arts and as the basis for a 
symbolic world of meanings, beliefs, values, tr aditions which are expressed in language, art, 
religion and myths.  
The personal meaning of the word “culture” does not vary extensively across age: more than 
one third of Europeans think of cu lture primarily in terms of arts  (either performance or visual 
arts). As age increases people are more likely to  think of culture in these terms, but are less 
likely to perceive culture as a link to traditions and languag es. Young people (28 %) are more 
likely than their elders to consider that trad itions, languages, customs and social and cultural 
communities also belong to the field of cultu res, but are less numerous (20 %) in linking 
literature, poetry and playwriting with culture.  
4.3.8.  Culture and multiculturalism 
Multiculturalism is generally understood as a shared commitment to recognize, maintain, and 
to accord respect and value to the different cultu res that coexist within a territorially defined 
space, be it that of a nation, city, regi on, municipality or any other society. 
Researchers identify three new trends regard ing the internationalisation of young people in 
Europe: the growing number of “third cultur e kids” (i.e. second an d third generation of 
immigrants), the increasing desire  for mobility (to visit other c ountries, to study abroad or to 
find employment) and the transnational circul ation of young well-trained professionals. All 
three trends, coupled with an  intensive use of communi cation technologies, boost the 
multicultural aspects of European societies a nd multiply the potential for young people to be 
in contact with different cultures.  
When asking young Europeans about some activit ies that involve exch anges with foreign 
cultures, very practical activitie s take the lead. More than ha lf of 15-24 year olds enjoys 
eating foreign cuisine compared to 32 % of those aged 55 and above. Around 30 % of young Europeans enjoy making friends with people fro m other European countries and more than 
20 % try to mix with other cult ures by travelling abroad.  
Increased mobility within Europe (for instance through study mobility, twinning of European 
cities, cross-border labour markets, tourism)  has developed young people's potential to make 
friends across Europe: a little more than 30 % of young people declared they have friends in other European countries. 
Watching foreign language TV and movies is al so popular within people aged 15-24 and 25-
39, but only 13 % of people aged more than 50 lis ted it as an important cultural exchange 
activity.  
4.3.9.  Intercultural dialogue 
Intercultural dialogue is more than coexistence of different cultures within a territorially 
defined space. It may be defined as “a proc ess that comprises an open and respectful 
exchange or interaction between  individuals, groups and organi sations with different cultural 
backgrounds or worldviews. Among its aims are: to develop a d eeper understanding of 
diverse perspectives and practices; to increase  participation and the freedom and ability to 
make choices; to foster equality; and to enhance creative processes. The European Union declared 2008 as the European Year of Interc ultural Dialogue and recognises that Europe’s 
great cultural diversity represents  a unique advantage for all Europ eans. This initiative aims at 
encouraging all those living in Europe to ex plore the benefits of the European cultural 
EN 83   EN heritage and the opportunities to lear n from different cultural traditions. 
As a general pattern, people aged 16-24 in the EU are very open minded towards people 
coming from different parts of the world. Nearly  61 % of youth in this age group were willing 
to allow some or many people fr om different ethnic groups to en ter their country, while 39 % 
would allow none or a few. 
Percentage of people aged 16-24 willing to allow people from different ethnic groups into 
their society- EU 27, 2006  
38.9344.1215.6746.1932.2034.3656.3719.8252.9953.5075.6862.1583.6437.2946.6728.0946.3541.0534.8534.7738.93
61.0755.8884.3353.8167.8165.6443.6380.1847.0246.5024.3237.8516.3662.7153.3371.9153.6558.9565.1565.2361.07
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%NOUKSEFISISKPTPLATNLHULVCYFRESIEEEDEDKBEEU27
Non-A few Some or Many 
Source: European Social Survey31  
ESS2 (Reference period 2004-2005): Czech Republic, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg and Turkey 
ESS3 (Reference period 2006-2007): Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria , Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia,  Finland, France, Germany, 
Hungary, Ireland, Latvia, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portug al, Romania, Slovakia, Slov enia, Spain, Sweden and United 
Kingdom 
At national level, the picture is a little more contrasted. In more  than half of the countries, a 
majority of young people consider that their co untry should allow some or many people from 
other ethnicities in their countri es. They are proportionally less numerous in Cyprus, Latvia, 
                                                 
31 to what extent do you think [coun try] should allow people of the sa me race or ethnic group as most 
[country’s] people to come and live here? 
EN 84   EN Hungary, the Netherlands, Austria and Portugal.  In Cyprus, Latvia and Hungary, more than 
60 % of young people aged 16-24 consider that  only few people with other ethnic background 
should live in their country. 
Overall, most of the population aged over 16 considers that a countr y’s cultural life is 
enriched by immigrants. More  than 55 % of Europeans aged  between 16 and 29 agree or 
strongly agree that people from  foreign countries who live in  their country enrich their 
cultural life. The agreement w ith such statement is less widespread among people aged 30 
years old or more. But the benefits of intercul tural dialogues are still challenged by the fact 
that one fourth of young people in the age groups 16-24 and 25-29 consider that culture is not 
enriched by immigration flows. This proporti on reaches around 30 % in the population aged 
30 or more.  
At national level, Poland, Finland and Sweden  show the highest percentage of people 
regardless of age that are positive towards the en richment of their culture from foreign people. 
People become slightly less positive towards th e statement as they grow older, except in 
Estonia, Poland, Portugal and the United Kingdom. 
KEY FIGURES ON LEISURE TIME OF YOUNG PEOPLE 
• Young people (15-19) enjoy free time mo re then 20% of their total time 
• 82 % of young people aged 16-24 go to the cinema at least once a year (reduced to 58% for 
25-29) 
• 45% of young people declare practicing sport 
• 40% of young people declare going out with friends 
• 25% of young people declare reading 
• 23% of young people declare writing, singing or playing an instrument 
• 41.% of young people aged 16-29 declare visiting cultural sites at least once a year 
• 30% of young people declare having frie nds in other European countries 
• 61% of young people aged 16-24 will to a llow ethnic group to enter their country 
• 55% of young people aged 16-29 agree that pe ople for foreign countries enrich their 
cultural life 
4.4. The digital generation 
Due to increased popularity and affordabilit y, personal computers can now be found in a 
majority of homes across the European Union. Th is has driven down the cost of Internet and 
made it more accessible. 
4.4.1.  Young people play a leading role  in applying new technologies 
Young people are usually most enthusiastic to wards new technologies, and are the first to 
adopt and spread it. They are also most ofte n the leading innovators in using and spreading 
EN 85   EN ICT. It appears that having a dependent child is  an incentive to have computers at home. In 
2007, 75 % of households with at least one dependent child have  a computer, compared to 
around 50 % of the total number of European households. 66 % of all households with a 
computer also have Internet acce ss. There is a much higher rate  of households with dependent 
children that have Internet connections at home compared to those without children. 
USEFUL CONCEPTS AND DEFINITIONS 
Dependent children  cover two groups. All persons below 16 are considered to be dependent 
children. Persons aged 16 to 24, living in a household of which at least one of their parents is 
a member and who are economically inactive ar e also considered as dependent children. 
Source: Eurostat, European Community Household Panel (ECHP)  
However, households that have  a dependent child may also be considered as “young” and 
“middle age” households who are more receptive to the use of new technologies than the older part of the population. Furthermore, pare nts with a dependent child might be more 
willing to have PCs and Internet as they can be  considered tools for their children's education. 
There is still a geographical gap when consid ering access to personal computers and to 
Internet: more than 90 % of households with a dependent child in Germany, Luxembourg, 
Slovenia, Finland and Sweden have a personal  computer. This is followed by Austria (87 %) 
and the United Kingdom (85 %). The share of hous eholds with a dependent child that have 
access to a personal computer and Internet goes down to 56 % in Greece and 34 % in 
Romania.  
Households without a dependent child tend to have less access to a com puter and Internet. 
The biggest differences between the two categories of households  can be seen in the Czech 
Republic, Cyprus and Lithuania. In these countries, the proportion of households with 
dependent children having access to personal com puter is twice as high as those without 
dependent children. 
4.4.2.  A generational gap in ICT 
Europe's population has increased its daily us e of computers since 2004. Within the age group 
16-24, daily use of a computer has increased from 50 % in 2004 to almost 70 % in 2007. This 
tendency can be seen in all EU countries. Young Europeans aged 16-24 in  2007 use the 
computer more often than any other ag e group. The proportion of young people using 
computers on a daily basis is double that of the age range 45-54 in Bulgaria, Estonia, Greece, Latvia and Malta and even three (or little less)  higher in Poland, Portug al, Romania, Slovenia 
and Latvia. In the Nordic countries and in the Netherlands, more than 80 % of the 16-24 
years-old use a computer every day, while in Bulgaria, Greece, Cyprus and Romania this the 
daily use of computers for this age group does not go above 50 %. 
The Internet has undergone far-reac hing changes since its early days  in the late 1960s, having 
developed into a user friendly communications infrastructure available for all citizens. The 
Internet became accessible to the general publ ic in the beginning of the 1990s. Its use is 
greatly expanding, and the proportion of daily us ers aged 16-24 nearly doubled between 2004 
and 2007. 16-24 year olds take the lead in the da ily use of Internet. At EU level, 59 % of 
people age 16-24 use the Internet  daily, while as for the age group 25-34 the share is 51 % 
and for people in the age range  45-54, the share is 35 %. 
EN 86   EN More than 70 % of the population aged 16-24 consults the Intern et on a daily basis in the 
Nordic countries, Estonia, Latvia, Luxembour g the Netherlands and Slovenia. Greece and 
Romania present the lowest perc entage of people looking at Internet daily with 34 % and 
26 % respectively.  
Age is an important determinant in the frequency of Internet use, but the occupation or status 
of young people (whether you are a student, a work ers etc.) also matters. The Internet is 
commonly used in schools and uni versities as a learning tool. 
Almost 80 % of students in the EU Member St ates use computers daily and 68 % of them use 
the Internet on a daily basis. Only 7 % of  European students never use the Internet. 
4.4.3.  E-mobility 
Individual Internet connections, together wi th broadband expansion has made the Internet 
more accessible to people at home. While more than 30 % of the young population used the Internet in places such as Internet cafes, public libraries and government buildings in 2004, 
young people now tend more and more to use it at home. In 2004, less th an 50 % of the young 
population used Internet at home. This sh are had increased to almost 70 % in 2007. 
Home is the most common place of use of comp uter independent of age group. For the people 
aged 16-24 the preferred place is at home and at  the place of education while the older people 
use computers at home and at work except fo r Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia where 
the primary source of Internet access is the place of education. 
The place of education is also a very common place for an Internet connection when young 
people are aged 16-24. More than 50 % of young people from the Czech Republic, Denmark, 
the Baltic States, Hungary, the Netherlands, Po land, Slovenia, Slovakia, and Finland, use the 
Internet at their education places, while in  other European countries, although being the 
second source of Internet use, the percentage stays below 30 %. The place of education is not anymore such a popular place for Internet uses at the age range 25-34 due to the fact that most 
people at those age ranges have left education and started a working career. 
In France and Finland, looking at th e Internet at a friend's houses is common practice. In these 
countries, respectively 53 % and 67 % of th e young people aged 16-24 access the Internet in 
friends' houses. The percentage stays at levels  of 41 % in France and 51 % for Finland within 
the age range 25-34. 
Internet cafés are also quite popular for peopl e aged 16-24, especially in Greece, where 24 % 
of this group use them to conne ct to the Internet, but also 18  % in Slovakia, 14 % in Poland 
and 13 % in Spain and Portugal. Among its population aged 25-34, only Spain shows an 
important use of Internet cafes (10 %). In th e rest of the European  countries there is a 
remarkable decrease in the use of Internet cafés among older age groups. 
For people aged 25-34, their working place a llows them to access the Internet. In the 
Netherlands, more than 60 % use the work place as a connection to the Internet. On the other 
hand, in Romania this proportion reaches only 16 %. 
4.4.4.  E-skills 
E-skills are not just pure technical skills but also cross-disciplinary, cognitive and problem-
solving skills as well as an understanding of the fundamentals of the new communication 
EN 87   EN strategies. In fact, the European e-Skills Foru m considers that e-skills cover three main 
categories (ICT practitioner skills, ICT user skil ls and E-business skills) that are only partially 
covered by current data. 
Developing computer skills will also help the development of new types of social relations, 
business competitiveness and innovation in Europe. Finally, the lack of adequate e-skills may increase the risk of exclusion. 
USEFUL CONCEPTS AND DEFINITIONS 
The European e-Skills Forum has adopted a definition of the term “e-skills ” covering: 
ICT practitioner skills : the capabilities requir ed for researching, developing, designing, 
strategic planning, managing, producing, consu lting, marketing, selling, integrating, 
installing, administering, maintaining, supporting and servicing ICT systems. 
ICT user skills:  the capabilities required for the effective application of ICT systems and 
devices by the individual. ICT us ers apply systems as tools in support of their own work. User 
skills cover the use of common software tools and of specialised t ools supporting business 
functions within industry. At the general level, they cover “digit al literacy”. Digital literacy 
involves the confident and cr itical use of ICT for wor k, leisure and communication 
underpinned by basic ICT skills: the use of computers to retr ieve, assess, store, produce, 
present and exchange information and to communicate and participate in collaborative 
networks via the Internet. 
E-business skills : the capabilities needed to exploit opportunities provided  by ICT, notably 
the Internet; to ensure more efficient and effective performance of different types of 
organisations; to explore possibilities for new ways of conducting business/administrative and 
organisational processes; and/or  to establish new businesses. 
Source: European Commission – DG Enterprises and Industry 
There is an obvious gap between the levels of comput er skills of people ag ed 16-24 and those 
of people aged 45-54. In 2007, 41 % of Europeans aged 16-24 are able to carry on at least 5 or 
6 computer related activities. This figure decr eases with the age to 35 % of people aged 25-
34, 26 % for 35-44 and only 18 % for people aged  45-54. Looking deeply into the European 
countries, some differences can be pointed  out. In Denmark, Ireland, The Netherlands, 
Finland, and Sweden, the level of high skills com puter users aged 25-34 is higher than within 
the people aged 16-24. This gap may be also e xplained by the way of acquisition of computer 
skills (self learning, peers etc). 
Digital competence can be acquired through va rious learning opportun ities (formal, non 
formal or informal). Data show  that people usually use many of these different alternatives to 
improve their personal skills. 
At EU 27 level, getting e-Skil ls is often a “learning by doing ” process for young people since 
most of them acquired some of their e-skills by sitting in front of their computers and playing 
with the machine (72 % of people aged 16-24 an d 66 % of people aged 25-34 improve their e-
skills by themselves). But asking for informal assistance to colleagues, friends and family 
members is also frequent, (65 % of the pe ople aged 16-24 and 59 % of the people aged 25-
34). Formalized educational inst itutions are a place of  obtaining e-skills more popular within 
the youngest (people aged 16-24), due probably to the fact that education in the field of 
EN 88   EN information technologies has been wide spread  in European schools in the last years (in 
2002/03 most of European countr ies had included ICT in thei r compulsory curriculum in 
primary and general secondary education as a “s eparate subject in its own right or/and as a 
tool for other subjects”).  
In all European countries, young people (16-24) co mbine all or part of these three ways to 
acquire or improve their e-skills but the hierar chy may vary across count ries. For instance, in 
Germany, young people are more nu merous to ask for informal assistance (91 % of the age 
group) than to learn by doing (87 %) or throu gh formal educational institutions (69 %). In 
most of the countries except Estonia (69 %), Fr ance (53 %) and Sweden (50 %), less than the 
half of young people aged between 16 and 24  self-study using books, cd-roms or other 
material. 
People aged 25 to 34 use the same means of acqui ring e-skills as their younger counterparts. It 
should also be emphasized that they are more numerous than their j unior peers to develop 
their skills through se lf study or training course and adult ed ucation center. In nearly half of 
the countries, more than 10 % of this ag e group attended such a training course.  
Girls and boys acquire their e-skills through th e same means with a slight preference for 
women aged 16-24 to use formalized education. 
USEFUL CONCEPTS AND DEFINITIONS 
Different uses of computers 
Sending / receiving e-mails : It includes the use of e-mail for sending messages to friends or 
for getting information on goods/services. 
Telephoning over the Int ernet / videoconferencing : Telephoning over th e Internet is a 
relatively inexpensive method to  communicate and is often th e method used by companies 
offering reduced cost telephone charges. Users may not be aware that they are communicating 
using such Internet-based tele phony, Voiceover- IP or VoIP. Ne xt to nVoIP, peer-to-peer 
telephony is becoming more important. The user needs to install a li ttle program (such as 
Skype) for making free calls over the Internet to anyone else who also has this software. 
Usually, one can also make calls  to normal fixed or mobile lines via a pre-paid credit. 
Videoconferencing includes audio and visual communication between tw o or more groups or 
persons. Videoconferencing is more widely used  by organisations and replaces the need for 
face to face meetings.  
Other (use of chat sites, messenger, etc.) : Chat sites can be used by two or more persons for 
the purpose of communication. This communicati on is by written word (similar to email). 
This item also covers instant messaging which means real-time communication between 
people on the basis of typed text. 
Finding information about goods or services : Using the Internet to seek for information 
about any household good, for example, films,  music, video-game s, books, e-learning 
material, clothes, electronic equipment computer  software or services for example banking, 
financial or health services. It does not incl ude transactions, e.g. purchases of any goods or 
services (although one will usually look up inform ation on a good or services before actually 
purchasing it).  
EN 89   EN Using services related to travel and accommodation : Includes using the Internet for 
ascertaining information or to purchase goods and services in relation to travel and 
accommodation, for example travel tickets, hotels or any other type of accommodation or web 
sites containing information for tourists. 
Listening to web radios / watching web television : This covers both live streaming (real-
time) and radio or TV ‘on demand’ (batch, i.e. the user can listen/watch programs later on).  
Playing or downloading games , images, films or music : This refers to actually 
downloading games, images for use, f ilms for watching, or music for listening. 
Downloading software : Includes downloading software e ither free of charge or under 
payment. 
Reading or downloading online newspapers / news magazines : This includes all types of 
online newspapers and magazines either free of charge or under payment.  
Looking for a job or sending a job application : Includes searching specific web sites for 
job ‘hunting’ or for sending an  application for a job. Sendi ng a job applica tion should be 
included in this category onl y if it was sent on-line. 
Seeking health-related inform ation (e.g. injury, disease, nutrition, improving health, 
etc.): This item refers to Internet use for health  related activities. The scope is limited to 
private purpose, professional use is not taken into account. Private should however not be 
limited to own personal use, but can also include Internet use for health related activities on 
behalf of other family members or friends. In cludes general searches via a search engine 
(Google, Yahoo!,) using keywords in one of th e mentioned fields. This item also includes 
more specific searches on specialized webs ites such as the Ministry of Health, non-
governmental bodies or interest groups. It includes activities such as making an appointment 
on-line with a practitioner, requesting a pres cription on-line from a pr actitioner or seeking 
medical advice on-line from a practitioner. 
Internet Banking : This includes electronic transactions with a bank for payment, transfers, 
etc. or for looking up account information. Electr onic transactions for ot her types of financial 
services are not covered by this category. 
Selling goods or services (e.g. via auctions) Selling goods or serv ices on-line does not 
require an electronic payment transaction, i.e. th e transaction or ‘deal’ is done on-line but the 
payment and/or delivery can take place off-line.  Putting an advertisement on a website to, for 
example, sell a second-hand bicycle or a spare tic ket for an event, is not included here as the 
transaction is in general not c oncluded on-line in an automatic manner (but via a phone call or 
informal e-mail).  
Obtaining information from public authorities’ websites : Includes searching to obtain any 
type of information from public authority web sites. Public authorities’ web sites include local 
or central government offering information or services.  
Downloading official forms : Includes downloading official forms from public authorities' 
websites for any purpose of use (e.g. for in formation or for requesting a service). 
EN 90   EN Sending in filled forms : Includes filled in forms sent via Internet (public authorities' 
websites) only. Forms downloaded, printed, filled in and sent by post are not included in this 
category. 
Source: Eurostat – Statistics on the Information Society.  
4.4.5.  Using the Internet 
Being familiar with computers is a first step towa rd using the Internet. It appears that most of 
young people know how to use the basic functions  of the Internet (using search engine, 
sending email with attachments or post message in  a chat room) but fewer know how to create 
a web page or to make Internet phone calls. 
Using the Internet as a search engine is the mo st widely spread e-skill in European society, 
followed by attaching files to e-mails and posting messages to chat rooms. This is true for all the age ranges, although the percen tage of people with this kind of skills decreases with age. 
People age 16-24 have integrated into their lives the Internet as a communication tool. Except 
for Romania and Cyprus (where the percentage do es not reach 50 %), the great majority of the 
population aged 16-24 know how to send e-mail w ith attachments. Almo st all the population 
in Denmark, Estonia, the Netherlands , and Finland, is in this situation. 
The level of people being able to send an e-mail with an atta chment within the age range 25-
34 decreases with respect to the previous age range (except in Ireland where it increases 
slightly) The biggest gap between  the two age groups can be seei ng in Lithuania and Portugal, 
where the decrease is more than one fourth. 
If looking at other Inte rnet skills, posting messa ges in chat rooms a nd making Internet phone 
calls are also common. Regarding the use of the Internet for phone calls, the differences 
between age ranges is not high. Peer to peer file sharing seems to be a competence of the 
youngest people. The creation of websites is a less popular skill. 
European youth like to search for information using Internet search tools: they go shopping 
from home by Internet, play games with frie nds they have never seen, open an Internet 
account and listen to music. Their activities are the same of olde r generations; they just do it 
in a new way. This is especially true when considering comm unication: the youngest 
generations are developing new ways  to interact with their worl d from the Internet and their 
computers. 
Europeans from all age ranges use the Internet  for communication purposes. Indeed, 85 % or 
more of Internet users in all age groups di d so, but young people tend to be relatively more 
numerous to use other kind of communications t ools (such as chat sites or messengers, etc.) 
than their elders. 
The second most used activity is searching information about goods and services even if it is 
remarkable how older Europeans take more adva ntage of this utility than younger Europeans. 
However, young people play or download games and music or software more than older people do.  
Internet is also a way to get in touch with future employers for young people: nearly 30 % of 
them have search specific web sites for job hun ting or for sending an application for a job. 
This is more than 10 % compared to older people. 
EN 91   EN Younger people are less numerous than their elders  to use the Internet for interactions with 
public authorities or pr actice Internet banking. 
Apart from the Internet’s communication capacity reflected in the high use of the Internet for 
sending and receiving e-mails, more than 50 % of  people aged 16-24 used the Internet for 
downloading music and games. Less than 50 % of young population use Internet for educational purposes and job s earching (although the figures re lating to education activities 
are not available for all demogra phics). Last, but not least, the Internet is becoming a reliable 
way for financial transactions especially in later years. This is due to the developments of security systems that make more reliable fo r society, especially the youngest, to work on the 
Internet for banking purposes. However, young Eu ropeans use less Internet banking probably 
because they have not yet acquired a regular inco me and usually don’t need to make financial 
operations regularly. 
It appears that, regarding the evolution in Internet use, se nding e-mail comes first, followed 
by travel and accommodation booking. Downloading music is another important activity that 
has seen an almost 10 % increase in the last 4 years. Using the Internet for educational purposes has been stable while the Internet is becoming a valu able tool for job searching.  
There are generally few gender differences in Internet activities. Increasingly, boys and girls 
equally use the Internet for co mmunication purposes (such as social networking) and sending 
e-mails and to a lower extent to interact with pu blic authorities, to search for a job or to do 
electronic transactions w ith a bank for payment, transfers, etc (i.e. Internet banking). More 
men than women aged 16-24 use th e Internet for playing games, this is the most remarkable 
gender difference. Women are more interested in information such as health and travel while 
men pay more attention to entertainment su ch as games, news, phone calls and radio. 
4.4.6.  E-commerce 
Clothes, sporting goods, books and magazines are the main goods acquired via e-commerce 
(Internet purchase). 
According to Eurostat's Community survey on ICT usage in households and by individuals 
(2007), people aged 16-24 prefer to buy cl othes and sporting goods, followed by films and 
music. More than 10 % use the Internet for cultu ral and leisure activities such as to purchase 
books, magazines and e-learning ma terial, and also tickets for events. Within the age range 
16-24 not so many people (less than 10 %) rely on Internet shopping for computer software, 
hardware or electronic equipm ent. Looking at the age range 25- 34 the preferences change: if 
clothes and spots goods keep a prime position, more than 15 % of the 25-34 years old buy 
online books, magazines and e-learning material.  
Purchasing through the Internet is not yet wi despread among European  Internet users and 
show great disparities across coun tries. In fact, in most of the countries, less than 10 % of 
those who used Internet in th e last twelve months purchased  goods such as books, films and 
music, hardware, software, electronic equipmen t or clothes. People from Germany, France, 
Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Austria, Nordic  countries and the United Kingdom were, 
during 2007 the most active in such Internet pur chases. On the reverse, in Bulgaria, Greece, 
Lithuania and Romania, 3 % or less of each age group purchased such goods through the Internet. 
EN 92   EN Internet users aged between 25 and 34 are propor tionally more numerous than their juniors to 
purchase goods via the Internet. This is true in  most of the countries and for most of the 
categories of goods that are presented here. 
Clothes (and sporting goods) as well as musi c and films are the goods and services most 
purchased by Internet users in Denmark, Germany, Finland, Sweden, and United Kingdom by 
young people aged between 16 and 24. Indeed, mo re than 25 % (but less than 40 %) of 
Internet users of this age gr oup purchased such goods during 2007. In nearly half of the 
countries, more people bought books, magazines and e-learning material than any other 
goods. It is the case of clothes and sportin g goods in Belgium, France, Cyprus, the 
Netherlands, Poland, Slovenia and Romania. Buyi ng music and films come first in only five 
countries (Denmark, Ireland, Malta, Sweden and United Kingdom) for this age group. 
KEY FIGURES ON THE DIGITAL AND INTERNET GENERATION 
• 70% of young people aged 16-24 daily use comput ers (in 2007 compared to 50% in 2004) 
• 59% of young people aged 16-24 daily use Internet 
• 41% of young people aged 16-24 are able to carry  on at least 5 comput er related activities 
(18% for 35-44) 
• 30% of young people declare searching a job on Internet 
EN 93   EN  
5. RECOMMENDATIONS DERIVED FROM RESEARCH FOR POLICYMAKERS AND YOUTH 
WORKERS  
The European Commission has funded a number of  youth-related research projects under the 
Fourth, Fifth, Sixth and Seve nth Research Framework Programmes (from 1996 to 2013). The 
report "European Research on Youth" examines th e results achieved so far and analyses some 
common recurring themes which are of interest  to policymakers and persons working with 
young people.32 
The report suggests a number of recommendations  for policymaking in terms of content and 
methodology. Some of these recommendations ar e concerned with the ways in which 
policymaking happens in general when addressing issues of engagement of citizens, avoiding 
exclusion, and the practices which contribute to success. Others address the content of 
policymaking more directly and provide advice on how to most appropria tely address issues 
relating to young peoples’ participation in employment, thei r transition from education and 
training to the world of work, and finally th eir participation in society as committed and 
engaged citizens. 
The recommendations are presented at two levels: A first level of recommendations which are directed to policymak ers in general which identify 
good practice to inform the policymaking pro cess. A second leve l which identifies 
recommendations of particular interest to t hose who are working in the youth policy field and 
dealing with issues of exclus ion, effective transition to the world of work and citizenship. 
5.1.  Recommendations to policymakers  
In order to ensure good pract ice policymaking should be seen as a process which: 
(1) involves all the key actors in a given area, stakeholders and those who will be the 
target public of the policy. 
(2) is holistic, involving the consideration of every aspect of  a particular issue, at the 
levels at which action is required, a nd considering the impacts both intended and 
unintended which are likely to be  the end result of the policy. 
(3) where context plays a crucial role in de termining what works and what does not. 
Policymakers need to be aware of the role  of context when examining policy models 
from other countries and ensure that they fu lly consider the importance of the cultural, 
historical, and social context wi thin which they are operating. 
(4) builds on the broader policy context crea ted at EU level th rough macro level 
approaches such as those advocated in the Renewed Social Agenda and the Lisbon Process, creating an impetus for refo rm processes within Member States. 
                                                
 
32 These recommendations appeared in the policy re view "European Research on Youth" (European 
Commission, April 2009). The publication is available at: http://ec.europa.eu/research/social-
sciences/library_en.html . 
EN 94   EN Policymakers should act on this impetus and adapt their policies to suit their local 
contexts. 
(5) is creative, all embracing and which anticipates issues rather than one which is 
premised on developing a reactive approach  to particular problems. Policymakers 
should take a longer term view which sees particular initiati ves as part of a continuum 
of legislative action. 
(6) ensures appropriate balance between the de velopment of policies targeting individual 
needs and approaches which address broade r infrastructural questions within which 
social objectives can be achieved. 
(7) where evaluation and monitoring are seen as  a continuing part of the policymaking 
process. They should not be based on quantitative data but should also address the effectiveness of policies in qualitative terms. 
5.2.  Recommendations to youth workers 
In order to ensure effective policymaking by those working with young people and their 
transition from education to work policymakers should: 
(1) ensure that the voice of young people is hear d when formulating policies to enable 
them to move from education and trai ning into the world of employment. 
Policymaking should be with young people rather than for them. 
(2) prioritise involving young people in identifyi ng solutions, developing appropriate 
responses and exploring implem entation issues particularly , but not only, when they 
are addressing issues of preparing responses  to issues of exclusion from the labour 
market and society. 
(3) encourage partnerships between the worlds of  education and enterprise in fostering the 
transition of young people into employment and in supporting the development of the 
competences and skills young people need to participate fully in employment and society. Policymakers should promote such partnerships and use them as a testing-
ground when they are developing policies. 
(4) adopt flexibility of approach in the identi fication of options when examining issues 
relating to the integration of  young people into the world of  employment. This entails 
examining options and choices which may involve a number of policy areas which 
potentially impact on the transition from education and traini ng to the world of 
employment. 
(5) ensure effective transition of young people in to active life. This will not happen in a 
sustainable way without signifi cant investment of time and resources in putting in 
place appropriate system wide infrastructural initiatives which target social inclusion 
and the effective participation of young people in employment. 
(6) elaborate policies which are aimed at ensuring the effective engagement and 
participation of young people in  citizenship initia tives at local and national levels. 
These have an added benefit of enhanci ng young peoples’ sense of themselves as 
European citizens. 
EN 95   EN (7) take care that ente rprise education plays a major ro le in ensuring that young people 
develop the kinds of skills which will enable them to participate effectively in society and in the labour market. 
(8) ensure that they are aware of any unint ended outcomes of policies to promote the 
inclusion of young people in society. There ca n be a danger that some such policies 
may have the effect of excluding significant numbers of young people because of a lack of educati on and/or training.