4.5 Initiatives promoting social inclusion and raising awareness
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Address
Ministère des Sports, de la Jeunesse et de la Vie associative
Direction de la Jeunesse, Education Populaire et Vie Associative (DJEPVA)
95, avenue de France
FR-75650 Paris Cedex 13
Tel: /
E-Mail : djepva.sd1c@jeunesse-sports.gouv.fr
Website : https://www.jeunes.gouv.fr/
On this page
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Intercultural awareness
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Young people's rights
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Key initiatives to safeguard democracy and prevent radicalisation leading to violent extremism
Intercultural awareness
Youth mobility stakeholders are committed to promoting social inclusion and raising young people’s awareness of tolerance, diversity, and intercultural dialogue. Within the various youth organizations, special attention is given to young people with fewer opportunities (jeunes ayant moins d’opportunités – JAMO).
Erasmus+ France Youth and Sport Agency (Agence Erasmus+ France Jeunesse et Sports)
European and international mobility is a major driver of cultural openness, empowerment, and integration for young people, particularly those who are most distanced from such opportunities.
In order to ensure these experiences are accessible to all young people, as well as to youth professionals, and in line with the Diversity and Inclusion Strategy of the Erasmus+ France Youth & Sport Agency, France has allocated an annual budget of approximately €29 million in 2024. This budget is specifically earmarked for the Erasmus+ France Youth & Sport Agency to implement the Youth and Sport strands of the programme at the national level.
The French-German Youth Office (Office franco-allemand pour la jeunesse – OFAJ)
As a key instrument of Franco-German relations, the French-German Youth Office (OFAJ) supports both individual and group mobility projects led by a wide range of actors: schools, youth and non-formal education associations, sports federations, training centres, and local authorities.
In line with the work of the OFAJ's Diversity & Inclusion network, priority is given to schemes promoting the social inclusion of young people.
OFAJ governance is ensured by a Board of Directors co-chaired by the French and German ministers responsible for youth. Both countries contribute equally to its funding. In France, the full financial contribution to the FGYO is covered by programme 163 "Youth and Associative Life", amounting to €16,128,200 for the year 2025.
The Franco-Quebec Youth Office (Office franco-québécois pour la jeunesse - OFQJ)
The Franco-Quebec Youth Office (OFQJ) works to strengthen ties between French and Quebec youth, while also helping to broaden these exchanges across the entire French-speaking world. In this context, the OFQJ incorporates an active inclusion policy into its initiatives: 30% of participants in its programmes are young people with fewer opportunities, illustrating its commitment to broadening access to international mobility for all profiles.
In 2025, the French contribution to OFQJ’s activities will amount to €2,164,860, supporting around 2,600 young people in their mobility pathways.
The European Solidarity Corps (Corps européen de solidarité)
The European Solidarity Corps is one of the main European programmes for youth engagement. With a dedicated budget of €1.009 billion for the 2021–2027 period across Europe, the programme enables young people to participate in voluntary missions or to develop their own solidarity initiatives.
In France, the annual budget allocated for 2024 is approximately €10.8 million.
Young people's rights
Communication with young people concerning rights and responsibilities is a significant strand of public policies, in particular the ministry in charge of Youth (Ministry of Sports, Youth and Voluntary organisations), as well as the Rights Defender (Défenseur des Droits).
Several public structures are responsible for informing young people about their rights, such as the Youth Legal Access Points (Points d’accès au droit Jeunes – PAD Jeunes) or Youth Information Structures (structures « Information Jeunesse » - IJ) (for further information, see Section 4.6 'Access to quality services').
Aimed at young people under the age of 30, the PAD Jeunes is a reception, information and support centre, offering legal information and advice to help assert one’s rights: conflict with an employer, unpaid fines, difficulty obtaining a residence permit, family disputes, etc. The consultations are free of charge, confidential, and without appointment. IJ structures are more generalist; they inform and support young people in exercising their rights.
The Rights' Defender (Défenseur des Droits)
The Rights Defender is an independent association, whose mission is to provide information and defend rights. Its mission is to provide information about rights and to defend rights. That independent institution organises debates, especially work in schools, and “Film – Youth – Justice” (“Ciné – Jeune – Justice”) meetings that aim at facilitating understanding of justice and democracy through film screenings and a debate (for further information, please see 5.8).
Youth compass (Boussole des jeunes)
Youth compass is a project run by the Directorate of youth, popular education and the voluntary sector (DJEPVA) of the Ministry in charge of Youth and Voluntary organisations.
Developed with a territorial approach and in connection with local stakeholders, it is a digital platform that aims to connect young people aged 15 to 30 with support services. To reduce the rate of unclaimed entitlements, young people who have questions about available programs and the rights they may be eligible for are connected with local professionals capable of answering their questions and supporting them in their procedures and projects.
The services offered by the Boussole are currently being rolled out across the country, and cover areas such as employment, education and training, housing, health, international mobility, and civic engagement.
Key initiatives to safeguard democracy and prevent radicalisation leading to violent extremism
The rise in extremism and radicalisation is one of the government's priorities. In the face of a growing phenomenon, several measures have been put in place against hate speech and violent extremism:
- Since 2018, the Government has adopted a national plan for prevention of radicalisation entitled 'Prévenir pour protéger' (Prevent to protect), resulting from wide-ranging consultations carried out by the General Secretariat of the CIPDR – Interministerial Committee for the Prevention of Crime and Radicalisation (Comité interministériel de prévention de la délinquance et de la radicalisation), which mobilised 20 ministerial departments. It sets out 60 measures for reorientation of the prevention policy, organised into 5 focuses:
- Protecting minds against radicalisation
- Adding to the detection / prevention network
- Understanding and anticipating the evolution of radicalisation
- Professionalising local operators and assessing practices
- Adapting disengagement
- The law of 24 June 2020 aimed at combating hateful content on the Internet (known as the Avia law), allowed for, among other things:
- The creation of a specialised prosecutor's office: since 2021, the department of Paris has been home to a national centre specialising in online hate speech and intimidation;
- The creation of an online hate observatory. The latter is attached to the Audiovisual and Digital Communication Regulatory Authority (Autorité de régulation de la communication audiovisuelle et numérique – Arcom).
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A hotline and reporting system for radicalization has been established. It provides families with listening services, advice on steps to take, and psychological support.
- An information campaign and website: stop-djihadisme.gouv.fr. The site is dedicated to prevention and to fighting against terrorism. It is aimed at the general public, at people who are close to young people undergoing radicalisation (e.g. teachers and associations), and at young people themselves. It is educational in character and provides practical tools (infographics, testimony videos, and placards) to better grasp and act against the phenomenon.
Moreover socio-educational concepts have also been launched to fight against violent extremism, especially concepts that develop values of living together and of citizenship:
- a guide entitled “Actors in sport and facilitation: better knowledge, better understanding, and better prevention of radicalisation phenomena (Acteurs du sport et de l'animation : mieux connaître, mieux comprendre et mieux prévenir les phénomènes de radicalisation)” was drawn up by a working group steered by the ministry in charge of youth. The guide is intended for actors in the areas of sport and facilitation (youth and sports officers, sports educators, facilitators, sports leaders) in order to support them in grasping radicalisation phenomena and the means for effective prevention or reaction.
- In addition, the Family Allowance Fund (Caisse des allocations familiales – CAF), the Social Agricultural Mutual Fund (Mutualité sociale agricole – MSA), the Ministry of National Education, and the ministries in charge of Childhood and Youth launched the “Promeneurs du Net” (« Promeneurs du Net, une présence éducative sur Internet ») initiative in 2016: an educational presence on the Internet. A “Promeneur du Net” is a youth professional, educator, or youth worker who connects with young people online and on social networks to listen to them, provide advice, and support them in their projects. Initially implemented in a few departments, this action is being expanded nationwide. This new mode of social intervention contributes to the prevention of extremism, notably by reducing the risks of social disconnection through dialogue, exchange, and support.
Website : http://www.promeneursdunet.fr/
National strategy for the prevention of deliquency 2020-2024
Pending the update of the 2025-2030 national crime prevention strategy, the 2025 Interministerial Crime Prevention Fund (Fonds Interministériel de Prévention à la Délinquance) guidelines will refer to the previous 2020-2024 strategy. Source : Préfet du Bas-Rhin (2026). Prévention de la délinquance.
In addition to the national plan for the prevention of radicalisation, the government has drawn up the "national strategy for the prevention of delinquency 2020-2024". It includes 40 measures that meet 4 objectives:
- Prevention of juvenile delinquency before the age of 12
- Protecting vulnerable people as early as possible
- Stronger involvement of the population and civil society
- Renewed governance through adaptation to each territory
This strategy was based on a consultation process that brought together several types of structures, including associations of local elected representatives. It mobilises State services, local authorities and association networks. It also supports awareness-raising among young people about hate speech in:
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The Civic service, which is a commitment scheme for 16-25 year olds. These young people can carry out voluntary missions contributing to the prevention and fight against hate speech for 6 to 12 months with associations, local authorities or public establishments. An online training course and a reference manual will soon be made available to structures likely to offer young people voluntary work in the field of anti-discrimination.
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The financial support provided from the Ministry of Voluntary organisations, fighting against discrimination and hate speech. The Training Centers for Active Education Methods (Centres d'Entrainement aux Méthodes d'Education Active - CEMEA), which are based in the regions and offer training and courses related to social action, education, animation and health, have developed an educational course on hate speech online, including advice sheets aimed at young people on this subject.