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1. Legal/policy framework for the functioning and development of youth organisations

2. Public financial support

3. Initiatives to increase the diversity of participants

Legal/policy framework for the functioning and development of youth organisations

There is no legal/policy framework for the functioning and development of youth organizations.

Public financial support

The funding of community-based organizations differs. Usually the province and municipality provide subsidies to organizations or initiatives.  For example the Municipality of Rotterdam financially supports the Buddy project (only in Dutch). Another example is the Oranje Fonds (Orange Foundation) (only in Dutch). The Orange Foundation financially supports social initiatives for youth such as buddy projects, thus promoting contact and communication between groups of people. The Erasmus+ programme also offers an important opportunity for Dutch organizations and young people to access funding for education, training, mobility and volunteering (for this last subject, also see Chapter 2. Voluntary activities).

The types of activities that are supported

The types of activities vary from cultural to educational. But there is also a focus on activities for young people that should result in paid jobs. The Buddy project (only in Dutch), mentioned above, is an example. It is a cooperation between municipalities in the region Rijnmond (the region of the river Rijn estuary, near Rotterdam), and the employment agencies Randstad and Unique. This project originated from the Regionale Aanpak Jeugdwerkloosheid (2014) (Regional Approach Youth unemployment) (only in Dutch) and supports unemployed youth to find a job.

A second type of activity is Scouting Netherlands (See chapter 2). Young people can meet and become involved in projects.

Initiatives to increase the diversity of participants

Scouting Netherlands has developed an initiative that stimulates the participation of refugee children (only in Dutch). In 2012, the Oranje Fonds (Orange Foundation) (only in Dutch) for their programme Kansen voor jongeren (Chances for youth), selected twenty volunteer initiatives that focused on early school leavers from 18 to 23 years.