Existence of a National Youth Law

Several pieces of legislation regulate the youth field. The Act on Public Interest in the Youth Sector (Zakon o javnem interesu v mladinskem sektorju) may be considered as the most comprehensive and binding official document that addresses the needs and/or rights of young people and stipulates how youth issues should be addressed. The Act was adopted by the National Assembly of the Republic of Slovenia on 18 May 2010, promulgated on 28 May 2010 and entered into force on 12 June 2010.

In addition, several other legal acts, such as the following, are relevant to the youth field:

Several pieces of legislation regulate the youth field. The Act on Public Interest in the Youth Sector (Zakon o javnem interesu v mladinskem sektorju) may be considered as the most comprehensive and binding official document that addresses the needs and/or rights of young people and stipulates how youth issues should be addressed. The Act was adopted by the National Assembly of the Republic of Slovenia on 18 May 2010, promulgated on 28 May 2010 and entered into force on 12 June 2010.

- Youth Council Act (Zakon o mladinskih svetih; entered into force on 16 August 2000) regulates the status, operation, activities and financing of the National Youth Council of Slovenia and local community youth councils.

-Students Association Act (Zakon o skupnosti študentov; entered into force on 15 June 1994) regulates the status, operation and activities of student associations in Slovenia.

Scope and contents

Act on Public Interest in the Youth Sector adopted in 2010 determines the public interest in the youth sector as well as the method of implementing the public interest in the youth sector. It defines the youth, the youth sector, the status of youth organisations, the financial grants procedure and national awards. The Act identifies the Office of the Republic of Slovenia for Youth as the public authority responsible for the youth field. It also specifies the responsibilities of the Office of the Republic of Slovenia for Youth and ensures the promotion of the interests of the youth sector at the national level. The Act is also a legal basis for adoption of a national youth programme and establishing the Council of the Government of the Republic of Slovenia for Youth.

The Act on Public Interest in the Youth Sector is based on the principles of democracy, plurality, integrity, intergenerational solidarity, equality, non-discrimination and justice, multiculturalism, intercultural dialogue, volunteering, promoting a healthy lifestyle, respecting life and the environment, and the participation of non-governmental organisations in the management of public affairs.

According to the Act youth policy is a harmonised set of measures of various sectoral public policies with the purpose of promoting and facilitating the integration of youth in the economic, cultural and political life of the community and appropriate support mechanisms for developing youth work and operation of youth organisations, which is carried out in cooperation with autonomous and democratic representatives of youth organisations and professional and other organisations. In the Article 4 (Areas of youth sector), the Act also lists a variety of fields where youth policy is implemented, inter alia:

• autonomy of youth,
• nonformal learning and training and increasing the competences of youth,
• access of youth to the labour market and entrepreneurial development of youth,
• concern for youth with fewer opportunities in society,
• volunteering, solidarity and intergenerational participation of youth,
• mobility of youth and international integration,
• a healthy lifestyle and preventing various forms of youth dependencies,
• access of youth to cultural goods and promoting creativity and innovation among youth, and
• participation of youth in managing public affairs in society.

Beside the definition of the youth and youth policy, the Act brings some other definitions for wider understanding of youth policy and youth sector. It defines “youth organisation” and “organisation for youth” and for the first time it also defines youth work and structured dialogue.

The Act also defines co-financing as one of the main mechanisms available to organisations active in the youth field as they implement activities in line with programmes in the youth sector and outlines the conditions to obtain, manage and spend these financial resources (Chapter 4).

Article 4 of the Act, under the listing of the fields of the youth sector, identifies youth with fewer opportunities in society as a special target group in relation to care. However, no further elaboration on the characteristics or needs of this target group is made.

In addition to its conventional consultation procedures (see Chapter 5 of the Youth Wiki), the youth sector has been consulted in the adoption of the Act and has contributed to its final outline.

The Youth Council Act regulates the status, operation, activities and financing of the national Youth Council of Slovenia and local community youth councils. It was adopted in July 2000 and amended in June 2010.

The Act defines the Youth Council of Slovenia as a voluntary umbrella association of national youth organisations. The Act requires that all member organisations promote the interests of the youth sector. Local community youth councils, on the other hand, bring together youth organisations, 90% percent of the membership of which are under the age of 29 and 70% of the management of which are aged between 15 and 29.

The mission of the Youth Council of Slovenia and local community youth councils is to represent the interests of member youth organisations. Their main activities are youth work and other youth activities that provide the conditions for and supports the development of youth initiatives and youth organisations, and that ensure the participation of young people in decision-making processes and other activities that are of an interest to them.

The Act ensures that the Youth Council of Slovenia and local youth councils are consulted by the government, ministries, other state bodies and local authorities on the youth-related laws and regulations that are implemented. In addition, it defines the financial support available to youth councils and sets the monitoring framework and penalties for the misbehaviour of youth councils.

Revisions/updates

The Public Interest in the Youth Sector Act has not yet been amended. On the other hand, the Youth Council Act was amended in June 2010 to align its content with the new Act on Public Interest in the Youth Sector. Moreover, the revised Act clarifies the status of a national youth organisations, in particular the autonomy of those youth organisations that operate under other legal entities and introduces changes which shall enable wider participation of young people in decision-making. They now have a mandate to carry out or participate in the implementation of youth work and other activities in the youth sector, in accordance with the law governing the public interest in the youth sector; mandate to facilitate the participation of young people in the adoption of laws and regulations affecting the life and work of young people and perform other tasks for the promotion of the interests of young people as defined in the basic act.