Sorry, you need to enable JavaScript to visit this website.
Skip to main content
European Commission logo

YouthWiki

EACEA National Policies Platform
Greece

Greece

1. Youth Policy Governance

1.7 Funding youth policy

Last update: 5 March 2024
On this page
  1. How Youth policy is funded
  2. What is funded?
  3. Financial accountability
  4. Use of EU Funds

How Youth policy is funded

The government of Greece develops a proposal for the state budget of the next year, close to the end of each year, which is discussed and voted in the Hellenic Parliament. The Hellenic Ministry of Education, Religious Affairs and Sports and particularly the  General Secretariat for Vocational Education, Training, Lifelong Learning (GSVETLL), is able to receive the funds and manage the state budget accordingly, once it has been approved by the Parliament. Moreover, the Ministry of Education, Religious Affairs and Sports, outsources a part of the youth activities by funding directly the universities or other organisations from both public and private sector, for youth related actions. Besides that, other ministries and public organisations as well receive funds from the state budget, however the usage of the funding for youth is a matter of prioritisation for the target population (age group) that each organisation defines.

What is funded

According to the report that accompanies that state budget of 2022, several of the main priorities for the year 2022 include:

  • The strengthening of young people, through the abolition of the tax of parental benefits-donations for benefits of donations worth up to 800,000 euros for first degree relatives, the extension of the housing benefit to the students of the Institutes of Vocational Training (IEK), the strengthening of young people without employment experience for the first 6 months of their employment and the abolition of the mobile subscriber fee for young people up to 29 years old.
  • The financing of a programme that aims to address youth unemployment and provides the payment of a total amount of 1,200 euros (during the first six months of employment) to young people aged 18-29 who have no previous work experience and will be hired in 2022. 
  • Prepaid card for use in tourism and cultural activities, as an incentive to vaccinate the age group 18-25 for the Covid-19 disease.

In addition, the following actions are implemented:

  • Datapass: All young people aged 15-17 years old who have received at least the first or the only dose of the vaccine since the entry into force of the National Vaccination Programme against Covid-19 until 31.12.2021, were entitled to a 50GB data package for 5 months (Freedom Pass/Data) by relevant providers.
  • The Ministry of Environment and Energy announced that the second cycle of the "Moving Electrically" programme to promote electromobility started in April 2022.

The new programme, with a budget of €50 million for 2022, includes increased subsidies for the purchase of electric cars and two-wheelers and introduces social criteria for disabled people, three-parent families and - for the first time - for young people up to 29 years old.

 

Financial accountability

The Parliament's State Budget Office (hereinafter called “Office”) was established by the Hellenic Parliament's article 36A of the Parliament’s Standing Orders. The Office is responsible for the monitoring of State Budget's implementation, the assistance to the workings of the Special Committee on the Financial Statement and the General Balance Sheet. The Office works according to its own Special Regulation for its internal organization and operation.

According to the report, issued by the General Accounting Office of the Ministry Of Finance, regarding the monitoring of the  achievement of the State Budget’s expenditure targets: “The law 4270/2014 (Government Gazette A' 143), as amended and currently in force, in order to monitor the state budget execution and to ensure the proper budgetary management principles, established a procedure for the determination of quarterly budget execution targets for each entity as well as corrective actions in case of significant deviations from targets.

Specifically, the Central Administration authorities send to the General Government Budget Directorate of the General Accounting Office, a monthly budget implementation programme (Ordinary Budget and Public Investment Budget). Depending on the monthly targets, quarterly targets are set. Targets are monitored on a cumulative basis every three months. In cases where the implementation exceeds the quarterly expenditure targets by 10%, the head of Financial Services prepares a report justifying these deviations and analyzing the administrative actions that have been implemented for their correction.

 

Use of EU Funds

Erasmus+ is the programme of the European Commission for Education, Training, Youth and Sports, which aims to contribute to personal development, strengthening skills and employability of participants and to support modernisation of education, training and youth systems in all areas of Lifelong Learning (Higher Education, Vocational Education and Training, Adult Education, School Education, Youth activities, Sports).

The General Secretariat for Primary, Secondary Education and Special Education is the National Authority (NAU), responsible for the supervision of the Education and Training sectors of the Erasmus+ programme, whereas the General Secretariat for Vocational Education, Training, Lifelong Learning is the National Authority (NAU), responsible for the supervision of the Youth and Sports sectors of the Erasmus+ programme.

The State Scholarship Foundation (IKY) has been appointed as the National Agency for the implementation of the Erasmus+ Programme for the sectors of Education and Training for the programming period 2021-2027. The Erasmus+ programme is an important financial mechanism, as it supports mobility periods and transnational partnership plans for the Vocational sector Education and Training, allocating 27% of the available budget for the country.

The Youth and Lifelong Learning Foundation (INEDIVIM) is appointed as the National Agency (NA) for Erasmus+ for the Youth and Sport sector and for the European Solidarity Corps, for the period 2021-2027.

Erasmus+ in Youth sector supports young people to improve their skills through non-formal and informal learning methods. Furthermore, the activities in Youth Sector are considered to have a particularly positive impact on young people, as well as on the organisations involved, the communities in which these activities take place, the youth sector itself and the European economic and social sector in general.

The European Solidarity Corps (ESC) is a funding programme of the European Union that creates opportunities for young people to volunteer and run their own solidarity projects that benefit communities around Europe. It was announced by the President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, during his annual State of the European Union speech in September 2016, and officially launched in 2018. Based on the success of this initiative, the European Solidarity Corps continues its activities for the new programming period 2021-2027.

The European Commission works with National Agencies to manage the European Solidarity Corps. The Youth and Lifelong Learning Foundation has been designated as the Hellenic National Agency (NA) of this programme.

The Eurodesk Network is a portal that provides young people, and those working with them, information on European policies and opportunities the European Union offers.

The Eurodesk Network operates in 33 European countries and it offers for free immediate online access to specialised and accurate information, covering a wide range of topics, such as work, education, mobility, volunteering et al., which can guide young people in the right direction, using specialised information tools.

The Eurodesk Network also supports and contributes to the European Youth Portal content, which publishes articles, news and events for young people, at both national and European level. The site shares high-quality, timely and accurate information about 33 countries, available in 27 languages, on topics such as education, volunteering, work, participation, culture, health, social inclusion and the world.