In Italy, youth policies are relatively new compared to other sectors of public policies.

The first legal reference about “young people” is contained in Art. 31 of the Constitution, which states that “The Republic protects mothers, children and the young by adopting necessary provisions”.

Youth policies are based on the principle of concurrent jurisdiction between the State and Regions, and on the principle of subsidiarity, with the active involvement of the Third Sector and of youth organizations.

Youth policy-making takes place at various levels.

At the central level, youth policies are under the direct responsibility of the Prime Minister or of his/her delegated political Authority, usually an Undersecretary or a Minister. On 22^nd October 2022, the On. Andrea Abodi was appointed Minister of Sport and Youth. The Department for Youth Policies and Universal Civic Service (DPGSCU) of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers is the institution responsible for supporting the political Authority in the promotion and coordination of all Government actions aimed at ensuring the implementation of youth policies. The DPGSCU also manages the Universal Civic Service, the national volunteering programme for youth.

At the territorial level, the Regions and the autonomous Provinces enact youth laws, while local authorities, the Third Sector and youth organizations are actively involved in both its bottom-up design and implementation.

The “Unified Conference” (Conferenza Unificata) - that includes the National Government, the Regions, the Autonomous Provinces of Trento and Bolzano, the National Association of the Italian Municipalities (Associazione Nazionale dei Comuni Italiani - ANCI) and the Union of the Italian Provinces (Unione delle Province d’Italia - UPI) - allows for a dialogue on youth among the different policy making actors.