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1. Structure of Decision-making

2. Main Themes

3. The National Agency for Youth

4. Policy monitoring and evaluation

Structure of Decision-making

Youth policies are defined and encouraged by the central authority and  implemented regionally. The French Parliament (National assembly, Senate), votes laws on various subjects including youth. Local authorities are also involved in drafting public youth policies and work in partnership with the ministry responsible for youth. Moreover, at local level, the French administrative system depends on the State (Government and ministries) and local public authorities alike. Lastly, it exists various local public (adminitrative) authorities  as the region (région), the department (département), the municipality (commune) and the intermunicipality (intercommunalité), each having its own perimeter of action.

Interministerial Delegate for Youth

Since 2014, there is a Interministerial delegate for youth. This role is carried out by the director of the Directorate of Youth, Popular Education and Associative Life (DJEPVA) within the ministry of Sports, Youth and Voluntary organisations regarding the decree of the 12th November of 2024. This delegate coordinates the implementation of actions carried out by the various ministries in favour of young people, ensuring that all ministerial players are involved in the framework of the Interministerial Committee for Youth (CIJ) or the Interservices Committee (CIS).

Ministry of Sports, Youth and Voluntary organisations

The national authority is the Ministry of Sports, Youth and Voluntary organisations as well as its deconcentrated authorities. The ministry has the general competence of definition of the national strategy, regulation and control of the youth policy according to decree of the 8th January, 2025, attributing the Minister's prerogatives.

To develop and implement its youth policy, the Minister of Sports, Youth and Voluntary organisations relies on the Directorate for Youth, Non-Formal Education and Voluntary Organisation (DJEPVA - Direction de la Jeunesse, de l’Education Populaire et de la Vie Associative)  which draws up and implements youth policy. The DJEPVA comprises:

• the Sub-directorate for interministerial youth and voluntary organisations policies ;
• the Sub-directorate for popular education ;
• the Sub-directorate for engagement (since 2025) ;
• the National Institute for Youth and Popular Education (a national competence service).

The General Secretariat of the Advisory Council on Youth Policies (Conseil d'orientation des politiques de jeunesse - COJ), the General Secretariat of the High Council for Community Life (Haut conseil à la vie associative - HCVA) and the General Secretariat of the Animation Sector Committee (Comité filière animation) are attached to the Director of the DJEPVA.

The DJEPVA develops, coordinates and evaluates policies promoting youth, engagement, popular education and voluntary organisations through several actvities:

• Financing and supervising the Civic Service Agency, the Franco-German Youth Office (OFAJ) and the French section of the Franco-Quebec Youth Office (OFQJ).
• Contributing to the development of European and international programmes in the field of youth and popular education, acting as the national authority for Erasmus+ Youth and Sports and European Solidarity Corps programmes.

• Supporting the educational continuity of children and young people between school and non-school time.

• Encouraging young people in their access to autonomy and equal opportunities.

• Contributing to the implementation of policies for the voluntary sector by simplifying the legal framework for associations and recognising the importance of non-profit and popular education organisations, which also receive financial support.
• Ensuring the educational quality and safety of minors participating in collective accomodations for minors, and implements local educational policies (politiques éducatives territoriales - PEDT) in partnership with local authorities, associations and schools.

The National Agency for Territorial Cohesion (Agence nationale de la cohésion des territoires - ANCT)

The ANCT was set up in 2020 by merging the General Commission for Territorial Equality (Commissariat général à l'égalité des territoires), the digital agency and the public establishment for territorial planning of restructuration of commercial and artisanal spaces (Etablissement public d'aménagement de restructuration des espaces commerciaux et artisanaux - Epareca). It sustains exchanges and links with local authorities.This agency supports local authorities in their competence on education, youth, or access of young people to culture and sports (see section below “local authorities”).

Deconcentrated  departments

Deconcentration is a process of state planning that consists of establishing administrative authorities representing the state in local administrative districts, known as deconcentrated services. These authorities have no autonomy or legal personality of their own. The aim of this process is to improve the efficiency of the state by speeding up decision-making at local level.

France is organised into 18 regions (13 regions in metropolitan France since January 2016 and 5 in overseas France), 101 departments, 34,955 communes and 1,254 public establishments for inter-communal cooperation (EPCI). These bodies have a measure of local autonomy (Art. 72 s. of the Constitution; European Charter of Local Autonomy, 1985), although such autonomy is exercised in compliance with the law and under State control. This “control of legality” may also be carried out by the departmental or regional Prefect.

Local authorities play a key role in youth policy, and their prerogatives in this area are becoming stronger by the years. At all levels (regional, departmental, municipal and inter-municipal), they carry out initiatives aimed at young people, complementing and cooperating with the DJEPVA and decentralised government departments.

As part of the reform of the territorial organisation of the State, since 2021, the missions relating to the field of youth, commitment and sport have been integrated into the Regional Academic Delegations for Youth and Sport (Délégation régionale académique à la jeunesse, à l'engagement et aux sports - DRAJES), under the authority of the academic rector and the prefect. The regional or departmental prefects have functional authority over the regional academic delegation for youth, commitment and sport for the missions within their competence.

These directorates are present in each regional 'capital' and are responsible for steering and coordinating the implementation of national youth policy.

The decree of 9 December 2020 on the competences of the academic authorities in the field of youth, popular education, associative life, civic engagement and sports policies and the organisation of the services responsible for their implementation, presents the missions of the DRAJES.

At departmental level, the departmental services for youth, commitment and sport (SDJES) are placed under the authority of the academic director of national education services (DASEN). The prefect of the department, for the missions within their competence, has functional authority over the departmental service for youth, commitment and sport. This was specified in Decree No. 2020-1542 of 9 December 2020 on the competences of the academic authorities in the field of youth, popular education, associative life, civic engagement and sports policies and the organisation of the services responsible for their implementation.

Main Themes

In 2025, youth policies will focus primarily on the following objectives:

• Promoting young people's independence;
• Encouraging young people's engagement and participation;
• Promoting mobility for all young people;
• Informing young people about public services that affect them and their rights.

Policy development draws on data, statistical data in particular, much of it produced by the Ministry of National Education’s Directorate for Evaluation, Forecasting and Performance (Direction de l'évaluation, de la prospective et de la performance – DEPP), as well as on work carried out by the National Institute for Youth and Non-Formal Education (INJEP) attached to the DJEPVA, and on analysis of data produced by the National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques – INSEE) and Ministerial Statistical Departments (Services statistiques ministériels – SSMs).

Since 2016, the DJEPVA and INJEP, in partnership with the Research Centre for the Study and Observation of Living Conditions (Centre de Recherche pour l'Étude et l'Observation des Conditions de Vie – CREDOC), have carried out an annual survey among over 4000 young people between 18 and 30 years of age living in France, enabling obtainment of qualitative information on youth: the Baromètre Jeunesse (Youth Barometer) (see Chapter 1.6. Evidence-based youth policy).

The National Agency for Youth

National Institute for Youth and Non-Formal Education

France does not have a youth agency (NB: the Erasmus+ youth and sports agency ; and the Civic service agency are public interest groups under the authority of the ministry of Sports, Youth and Voluntary organisations and not agencies as such). Public policies on youth are developed and coordinated by the departments of the Directorate for Youth, Non-formal Education and Voluntary organisation (DJEPVA).

Since 1 January 2016, the National Institute for Youth and Non-Formal Education (Institut national de la jeunesse et de l’éducation populaire – INJEP, created in 1953), which is a Government Agency with National Authority (Service à compétence nationale) has been attached to the Director of the DJEPVA. Its  missions and operation are set by Decree no.2015-1771 of 24 December 2015 on creation of a government agency with national authority called “National Institute for Youth and Non-Formal education”.

The Institute comprises five missions:

1. The Surveys, Data and Statistical Studies Mission (Mission des enquêtes, des données et des études statistiques – MEDES)
2. The Study and Research Mission (Mission d'étude et de recherche – MER)
3. The Experimentation and Evaluation of Public Policies Mission (Mission d'expérimentation et d'évaluation des politiques publiques – MEEPP)
4. The Valorisation and Dissemination Mission (Mission de valorisation et de diffusion – MVD)
5. The Documentation/Resource Centre Mission (Mission de la documentation/centre de ressources – Mdoc)

Its role as observatory is given concrete expression by production of analyses and statistical data, the research work it carries out, and its studies and assessments in the fields of youth, education, associations and sport.

The Institute plays a key role in knowledge and analysis of youth policies, as “a resource and expert assessment centre for all stakeholders in youth affairs, non-formal education and voluntary organisations, for parliamentary assemblies and bodies representing civil society”.

At the Prime Minister’s request, it carries out studies and drafts assessments relating to cross-ministerial youth policy, and oversees specific activities of observation or expert assessment of public action in favour of youth from the local to the European level.

At the request of the Prime Minister, it carries out studies or evaluations related to interministerial youth policy and sets up "at the request of the Minister for Youth, alone or in partnership with any public or private legal entity, specific observation or expertise activities for public actions in favour of young people".

In addition, INJEP runs the Experimental Funds for Youth (Fonds d'Expérimentation pour la Jeunesse - FEJ), a fund that finances experimental projects concerning youth.

Policy monitoring and evaluation

Assessment and analysis of public youth policies, along assessment or analysis of other policies in France, have been developed and systematised since the 1980s. They seek to assess the impact of youth programmes and policies, and make recommendations.

A variety of institutions and organisations participate in the assessment and monitoring of policies, including Ministerial Statistical Departments, studies and research institutes, Ministerial Inspection Departments and consultative bodies. The public authorities may also call upon the services of external policy assessment agencies to monitor their youth policies.

Each ministry has its own ministerial evaluation and statistical department, and are able to produce data and assess policies and programmes likely to concern young people. At the DJEPVA, the Surveys, Data and Statistical Studies Mission (MEDES, attached to the National Institute for Youth and Non-Formal Education) produces statistics in collaboration with the National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (INSEE). Its role is to produce and disseminate public statistics on youth, non-formal education and sport. 

Other ministerial evaluation and statistical departments are as follows:

• Ministry of Agriculture and Food: Department of Statistics and Foresight Analysis (Service de statistique et de la prospective – SSP)
• Ministry of Territorial Cohesion and Relations with Local Authorities: Department for Local Studies and Statistics (Département des études et des statistiques locales – DESL)
• Ministry of Public Action and Accounts: External Trade Statistics and Analyses Division (Département des statistiques et des études du commerce extérieur – DSECE)
• Ministry of Culture: Department of Studies, Foresight and Statistics (Département des études, de la prospective et des statistiques – DEPS)
• Ministry for the Armed Forces: Defence Economic Observatory (Observatoire économique de la défense – OED)
• Ministry for the Ecological and Inclusive Transition: Data and Statistical Studies Department (Service de données et des études statistiques – SDES)
• Ministry of National Education: Directorate for Evaluation, Forecasting and Performance (Direction de l'évaluation, de la prospective et de la performance – DEPP)
• Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Innovation: Information Systems and Statistical Studies Sub-Directorate (Sous-direction des systèmes d'information et des études statistiques – SIES)
• Ministry of Justice: Statistics and Studies Sub-Directorate (Sous-direction de la statistique et des études – SDSE)
• Ministry for Solidarity and Health: Directorate of Research, Studies, Evaluation and Statistics (Direction de la recherche, des études, de l'évaluation et des statistiques – DREES)

• Ministry of Labour: Directorate of Research, Economic Studies and Statistics (Direction de l’animation, de la recherche, des études et des statistiques – DARES)

   

The Advisory Council on Youth Policies (Conseil d’orientation des politiques de jeunesse - COJ) is an administrative advisory body, placed under the authority of the Prime Minister, created by Decree n°2016-1377 of 12 October 2016. Its missions were renewed in October 2021 for another five years. The members of the COJ were lastly appointed by the Decree of January 3rd, 2024 (See chapter 1.5 Cross sectoral approach with other ministries).

The COJ has three main missions:

1. it may be consulted on legislative and regulatory projects connected with youth, and discuss any questions of general interest concerning youth policies;
2. it may make proposals to the Government to improve young people’s situation

3. it has to send an annual report to the Government.

    

The Interministerial Directorate for Public Transformation

The Interministerial Directorate for Public Transformation (Direction interministérielle de la transformation publique – DITP) is a Prime Ministerial department that assists the French Government in the implementation and assessment of public policies.

Ministerial Inspection Departments

Several ministries have inspection departments or bodies responsible for carrying out inspections or producing assessment studies. In the field of public youth policies, the Minister of National Education and Youth’s “Youth and Sport” inspectors make up a civil service corps in its own right which participates in the implementation and assessment of public policies adopted by ministries. It may be required to carry out advisory, study and research missions in the fields of youth, non-formal education, physical and sports activities, collective recreational activities, and associations). Since September 2019, it has been merged with three other inspection bodies, namely the Inspectorate General for National Education (Inspection générale de l’éducation nationale – IGEN), the Inspectorate General for National Education and Research (Inspection générale de l’administration de l’éducation nationale et de la recherche – IGAENR), and the Inspectorate General of Libraries (Inspection générale des bibliothèques - IGB) – to form the General Inspectorate of Education, Sport and Research (Inspection générale de l’Éducation, du Sport et de la recherche – IGESR).