The main policies in the field of social inclusion for young people are framed in the Social Inclusion and Employment Operational Programme (POISE), in coordination with the Europe 2020 Strategy. In this context, in a logic of multi-level governance and subsidiarity, tools and models of organisation and operation that allow for tailored and flexible interventions were created, based on a proximity approach and with knowledge of the local realities, such as the GIP, CNAIM or the CLAIM Network, promoting the articulation between levels of central, regional and local administration (see section 4.2).

At the institutional level, an intersectoral coordination between the different ministries and structures of the State is promoted, which work with a wide network of social partners. The coordinated joint efforts are reflected on the articulation between different national plans, programmes and strategies in the fields of youth employment, sports, gender equality, citizenship, health, migrations and disabilities. There is also a coordination with the National Reform Plan (PNR) that provide for the development of a national strategy to combat poverty. Only in this way  it is possible to combat the risk of social exclusion and poverty that young Portuguese people are subject to due to the low levels of education, high unemployment rates and the incidence of NEETs. The children of immigrants, young people of Roma communities, children and young people living in single-parent families, or large families as well as households where unemployment is present require special attention from social inclusion policies.

By its national and European success and recognition, the “Choices Programme” (Programa Escolhas) should be highlighted as a good practice. It aims to promote the social inclusion of children and young people from the most vulnerable socio-economic contexts, especially descendants of immigrants, ethnic minorities (Roma communities), and Portuguese emigrants, on the basis of a local initiatives and resorting to youth workers. Created in 2001, it is an initiative of the High Commission for Migration (ACM, I.P.), the national equality body responsible for collaborating in the definition, implementation and evaluation of public policies regarding the attraction of migrants, the integration of migrants, including refugees, and Roma communities, and the management and enhancement of the diversity of cultures, ethnicities and religions through the promotion of intercultural and interreligious dialogue  (see section 4.4)