On this page

1. Youth employment measures

2. Flexicurity measures focusing on young people

3. Reconciliation of private and working life for young people

4. Funding of existing schemes/initiatives

5. Quality assurance

Youth employment measures

The main policy measures implemented at top-level to foster the access of young job-seekers to employment are offered by the Department of Labour of the Ministry of Labour and Social Insurance and the Human Resource Development Authority of Cyprus- HRDA (Αρχή Ανάπτυξης Ανθρώπινου Δυναμικού Κύπρου- ΑΝΑΔ). They both offer various schemes to unemployed people, including youth, who are facing barriers in finding and retaining jobs (low-skilled youth, social protection beneficiaries, unemployed at risk of long-term unemployment). All the available ongoing schemes can be found at the website of the Department of Labour and HRDA. Below is a list of the schemes that are still valid and relevant to the integration of young people in the labour market, provided by the Department of Labour: 

• ‘Scheme for the Employment of Young People aged 15 to 29 who are not in Education, Employment, or Training (NEETs) combined with two-month-period training’. The scheme was announced in 2024, with the aim to tackle youth unemployment among NEETs aged 15 to 29, through placing them in subsidized employment positions and gaining work experience combined with a two-month period of training. 

• ‘Incentive Scheme for hiring young people aged 15 to 29 who are not participating in education or training programs, with flexible employment arrangements’. The Scheme involves subsidizing part of the wage costs of staff as an incentive for employers to recruit young people aged 15 to 29 who are not participating in an education or training program and are registered as unemployed with the Public Employment Service (PES).

• ‘Provision of Incentives for the Employment of People with Disabilities 2021’. The Scheme includes the sponsorship to employers in the private sector for the recruitment of unemployed persons with disabilities registered with the PES, including young people with disabilities. This scheme runs since 2021 until the until the exhaustion of the total budget or relevant announcement.

Τhe schemes below are provided by the Human Resource Development Authority of Cyprus (ΑΝΑΔ): 

• ‘Scheme for the Employment and Training of Tertiary Education Graduates’ (Σχέδιο Στελέχωσης Επιχειρήσεων με Αποφοίτους Τριτοβάθμιας Εκπαίδευσης). The scheme aims at strengthening the management capacity of enterprises and organisations through the employment and training of qualified tertiary education graduates under 30 years of age. At the same time, it supports the smooth integration of graduates into suitable job positions, by providing incentives to employers to offer six-month placements that combine employment, practical training, and work experience.

• ‘Training programmes for young people not in education, employment or training (NEETs)’ (Προγράμματα κατάρτισης για νέους που βρίσκονται εκτός εκπαίδευσης, απασχόλησης και κατάρτισης (ΝΕΕΤs)). Eligible for participation in the programme are young people aged 15 to 29 years old who are not in education, employment or training (NEETs) and who are registered as unemployed in the register of the PES. The training programmes aim to offer basic knowledge and skills, including literacy, language and mathematical skills, as well as transversal skills such as communication, problem solving and critical thinking, teamwork and cooperation, time management, creativity, interpersonal relations, and practical job-search abilities such as CV preparation and job interview techniques. NEETs participate in the training programmes free of charge and receive a training allowance as well as coverage for travel and other related expenses.

Another scheme offered by the Ministry of Energy, Commerce and Industry to support young people’s integration in entrepreneurship, is the:

• Scheme for the development of ‘New Business activity- 2nd call 2024’ (Σχέδιο Ενίσχυσης Νέας Επιχειρηματικής Δραστηριότητας- 2η προκήρυξη- 2024). The scheme aims to develop, support and promote entrepreneurship by focusing on specific target groups, such as young people and women who wish to do business in any economic activity, in the sectors of manufacturing, services, and tourism utilising their knowledge, experience and talents. Young people aged 18-29 are among the eligible beneficiaries and are entitled up to 70% of funding.

Flexicurity measures focusing on young people

As part of the ‘Incentive scheme for hiring young people aged 15 to 29 who are not participating in education or training programs, with flexible employment arrangements’ (Σχέδιο παροχής κινήτρων για την απασχόληση νέων ηλικίας 15 μεχρι 29 που βρίσκονται εκτός Απασχόλησης, Εκπαίδευσης ή Κατάρτισης με ευέλικτες ρυθμίσεις απασχόλησης), several measures are introduced to support labour market flexibility, such as teleworking, flexible working hours, part-time employment, and job sharing. At the same time, the scheme incorporates elements of security, as it is a subsidised programme that provides financial support to employers, facilitating young people’s access to employment while promoting stable entry into the labour market.

Reconciliation of private and working life for young people

The Department of Labour is responsible for the proper implementation and monitoring of the Equal Treatment of men and women in employment and vocational training. The implementation of the legislation and its improvement through the introduction of new laws, and the modification of the existing ones, aim at achieving equal treatment of men and women in the field of work. The 2024 amendment to the Maternity Protection Law (ο Περί Προστασίας της Μητρότητας (Τροποποιητικός) Νόμος του 2024) represents a significant stride forward, extending protections to encompass cases of surrogate maternity. Additionally, the enactment of the Paternity Protection legislation (Law 117(I)/2017) (ο Περί Προστασίας της Πατρότητας Νόμος του 2017 (Ν.117(Ι)/2017) signifies a commitment to fostering a work environment conducive to the harmonization of professional responsibilities with family life. These measures and policies are integral to promoting a more equitable and balanced approach to work-life integration.

Funding of existing schemes/initiatives

Information about the funding of the schemes/initiatives about youth employment measures described above are as follows:

• The budget for the ‘Scheme for the Employment of Young People aged 15 to 29 who are not in Education, Employment, or Training (NEETs) combined with two-month-period training’ amounts to €7,824.000. It is funded by the Recovery and Resilience Mechanism.

• The budget for the ‘Incentive Scheme for hiring young people aged 15 to 29 who are not participating in education or training programs, with flexible employment arrangements’ (Σχέδιο παροχής κινήτρων για την απασχόληση νέων ηλικίας 15 μεχρι 29 που βρίσκονται εκτός Απασχόλησης, Εκπαίδευσης ή Κατάρτισης με ευέλικτες ρυθμίσεις απασχόλησης) amounts to €3,000,000. The scheme is co-funded by the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+) and the Republic of Cyprus under the Cohesion Policy Programme THALIA 2021-2027 Programme.

• The budget of the ‘Scheme providing Incentives for the Employment of People with Disabilities 2021’ is €2 million. The Plan may potentially be co-funded by the European Youth Initiative and the European Social Fund (ESF) .

• The budget for the ‘Training programmes for young people not in education, employment or training (NEETs)’ (Προγράμματα κατάρτισης για νέους που βρίσκονται εκτός εκπαίδευσης, απασχόλησης και κατάρτισης (ΝΕΕΤs)). The programme is co-funded by 60% from the European Social Fund Plus (ESF+) and 40% by the Human Resource Development Authority (HRDA) as the national contribution. For the period 2024-2027, it is estimated that the annual HRDA Budget for the operation of the Plan €5 000 000.

• The budget for the ‘Scheme for the Employment and Training of Tertiary Education Graduates’ (Σχέδιο Στελέχωσης Επιχειρήσεων με Αποφοίτους Τριτοβάθμιας Εκπαίδευσης) comes from national funds. For 2026, it is estimated that the annual HRDA Budget for the operation of the Plan will not exceed the amount of € 8 600 000.

• The total budget that will be allocated for the needs of the Scheme for the Development of ‘New Business Activity-2^nd call 2024’ (Σχέδιο Ενίσχυσης Νέας Επιχειρηματικής Δραστηριότητας – 2η προκήρυξη 2024) amounts to €20 million for the period 2024-2027.

Quality assurance

The HRDA ensures the quality of the programmes it subsidies by undertaking controls in the programme approval stage, the programme implementation stage and the payment of subsidy stage. The HRDA also carries out evaluation studies on the effectiveness and impact of its activities. To this end, a comprehensive system evaluating the impact of HRDA on the economy of Cyprus has been set up. Within this system, evaluation studies, which include field and desk research, are reflected in evaluations and reports, with the latest being the ‘Indicators of Enterprises’ Participation in HRDA’s Activities 2015-2021’ (Δείκτες συμμετοχής επιχειρήσεων σε δραστηριότητες της ΑνΑΔ 2015-2021 (Δεκέμβριος 2022) conducted by the HRDA.

In addition, many employment schemes include vocational training. Regarding this, the training programmes are implemented by public and private institutions and enterprises. To be approved they need to adhere to the criteria laid down by the HRDA. It is important to note that as of January 2015, vocational training centres, vocational training facilities and trainers are assessed against specific criteria to ensure that they are eligible for certification. 

As it concerns the above-mentioned schemes, there are no further youth-specific quality indicators or evaluation reports at this point.