On this page

1. Policy/legal framework

2. Main inclusive Youth-Work programmes and target groups

3. Youth work providers in the field of social inclusion for young people

4. Training and support for youth workers engaged in social inclusion programmes

5. Financial support

6. Quality assurance

Policy/legal framework

Youth work aimed at fostering social inclusion remains underdeveloped in current policy frameworks in Romania, as reflected in the absence of specific measures in the National Youth Strategy 2025-2027.

From an institutional perspective, no single public or non-governmental body is exclusively responsible for coordinating and advancing youth work, including its role in promoting social inclusion or combating social exclusion. Social inclusion was a key priority in the Youth Strategy 2015-2020, during which the Ministry of Youth and Sports assumed responsibility for promoting inclusive youth work. However, these initiatives were not systematically monitored, resulting in a lack of data on their outcomes and impact.

In terms of legal and policy context, the main framework supporting youth work for social inclusion is provided by the Youth Law. In addition, Law No. 350/2005 on grants from the public budget represents an important instrument for strengthening public capacity and supporting initiatives that contribute to the social inclusion of young people.

Main inclusive Youth-Work programmes and target groups

The most important policy framework to foster social inclusion is the grants programme of the Ministry responsible for youth (the Ministry of Youth and Sports until December 2021, the Ministry of Family, Youth and Equal Opportunities until December 2024, the Ministry of Labour, Family, Youth and Social Solidarity since December 2024). The grants are implemented based on the Law No. 350/2005 on grants from the public budget and a methodology is approved each year. This grant programme funds small projects (maximum 5 500 Euro) for youth NGOs and NGOs working with young people. Priority or extra points are given to projects targeting vulnerable young people. The programme funds 10-20 projects annually, but there are no data collected about the total number of young beneficiaries.

In Romania, programmes supporting life readiness for young people in foster care are primarily developed within the child protection system coordinated by the National Authority for the Protection of the Rights of the Child and Adoptionand implemented at county level by Directorates for Social Assistance and Child Protection (DGASPCs), often in partnership with NGOs. These programmes focus on preparing young people for independent living through the development of practical and social skills, including financial literacy, job readiness, household management, and access to housing. Key interventions include independent living centres, counselling and mentoring services, and support for continuing education or entering the labour market. In addition, some initiatives provide transitional support after leaving care, such as rent subsidies, employment mediation, and psychosocial assistance, although coverage and consistency vary across regions. The programmes have been funded by the European Social Fund and continued since 2022 by the Ministry of Family, Youth and Equal Opportunities, with over 6,000 beneficiaries in 2023

Young migrants are part of the target group of the grant projects targeting migrants in general, implemented by NGOs with the support of the Asylum and Migration Fund, managed by the General Inspectorate for Immigration. These projects are offering direct material and financial aid, as well as diverse non-formal learning activities for children, young people and adult migrants. However, none of these project targets young people in particular.

For the social inclusion of young Roma, the European Economic Area Grants supported, with funding from the programming period 2009-2014 and the programming period 2014-2021, projects for the social inclusion and education of vulnerable children and young people, including Roma and young people with health-related needs, such as those with disabilities, mental health issues. In funding period 2014-2021 (with implementation until 2023) the programme also includes 4 pre-defined projects, two of them covering the field of youth inclusion:

1. "Sustainable social and education integration through sport activities" implemented by the National University for Physical Education and Sports (UNEFS) Bucharest, in partnership with the Norwegian School of Sport Sciences;

2. "INCLUDE - Inclusion of Children and Youth at Risk" implemented by the Council of Europe in partnership with Romanian stakeholders.

Youth work providers in the field of social inclusion for young people

Main youth work providers in the field of social inclusion for young people are the NGOs. However, no list of such NGOs is available in order to present the exact name of these providers. A map of public youth work providers and of NGOs active in the field of youth work was created by the Ministry of Family, Youth and Equal Opportunities, based on the list of funded youth work projects. Many of the NGOs are small and working at local level.

There are two ways of conducting activities of social inclusion for young people by the NGOs doing this kind of youth work:

1. Providing social services, on the basis of the certification presented in section 4.6. Access to quality services and including youth work activities in the residential or non-residential centres of social services

2. Fundraising for grants for time-limited projects.

Public funds are not allocated in order to build capacity for the youth work providers towards social inclusion. Funds are available for activities, but a fundraising effort is needed from these NGOs.

Training and support for youth workers engaged in social inclusion programmes

The Ministry of Youth and Sports organised, on an annual basis several projects for training youth workers, including projects for training youth workers involved in social inclusion activities such as:

• Training for educators on combating hate speech.

• Training for social animators

• Non-formal education Laboratory.

• tineRetea - the national youth workers network. 

Moreover, Erasmus Plus funded projects contribute to the training of youth workers and according to reports of the National Agency, the majority of the Erasmus Plus funded projects, in the period 2018-2025, are supporting the social inclusion priority.

Financial support

Several grant-makers and funds were available for social inclusion projects, including the European Social Fund/European Social Fund Plus, the European Economic Area grants for NGOs and social inclusion, grants from the Ministry in change of youth (the Ministry of Youth and Sports until December 2021, the Ministry of Family, Youth and Equal Opportunities until December 2024). Due to the Romanian budget strucutre, it is impossible to compute the exact amount of funding available for these projects or for the social services targeting youth among the general social services funded and considering that most projects do not target only young people, but children and (older) adults, as well.

Quality assurance

Inspection, monitoring and control from the funding authority ensure quality assurance in NGOs projects or social services implemented by NGOs with public or European funding.