Action Plan 2022-2024 for the Youth Strategy 2030

The Action Plan 2022-2024 for the Youth Strategy 2030 (Plan de Acción 2022-2024 de la Estrategia de Juventud 2030)  was designed to enhance coordination between youth departments and educational institutions such as schools and universities. Its aim is to facilitate job opportunities and training pathways for young people, which youth workers are instrumental in implementing.

Key objectives of the Action Plan 2022-2024 include promoting healthy habits, encouraging youth volunteering and committing to eradicating discrimination, while fostering equality. These tasks are primarily the responsibility of youth workers, who play a key role in their execution at both regional and local levels.

Youth workers are critical human resources in implementing these policies, and their training and professional development have been prioritized to ensure they can meet the demands of the evolving youth work landscape. Some of the shared functions of youth workers across regions include:

• Coordinating with national, regional and local organisations to design, implement and evaluate youth plans, youth leisure programmes, and information campaigns;
• Providing information and advice on activities, resources, services and programmes for young people;
• Facilitating youth engagement through associations and volunteer opportunities;
• Supporting local youth councils and associations;
• Designing educational leisure activities and awareness campaigns that promote key values such as equality and community involvement;
• Identifying and disseminating good practices in youth work. 

Youth Guarantee Plus Plan (2021-2027)

The Youth Guarantee Plus Plan 2021-2027 for decent work for young people (Plan de Garantía Juvenil Plus 2021-2027 de trabajo digno para las personas jóvenes) replaced the previous Action Plan for Youth Employment (2019–2021) and is now the primary framework for youth employment policies in Spain. 

With a budget of €4.95 billion, this plan aims to ensure that all young people in Spain are offered quality opportunities for employment, education, or training within a maximum of four months of registering as unemployed or inactive.

The Youth Guarantee Plus Plan is designed to address specific challenges faced by young people, including those who are underqualified, overqualified, or inactive. It includes 69 measures across six key areas, focusing on:

• Vocational training and the acquisition of digital and language skills to enhance employability.
• The creation of quality employment opportunities for youth in socially sustainable economic models.
• Targeted support for vulnerable youth groups, such as those from rural areas, with functional diversity, or those from economically disadvantaged backgrounds.

Youth workers are integral to the implementation of this plan, providing career guidance, personalized coaching, and connecting young people with training and employment opportunities. These initiatives aim to:

• Increase employability by offering vocational training in key sectors such as digital skills and language proficiency.
• Promote equal opportunities by addressing the gender wage gap and ensuring access to quality employment for marginalized youth.

Cooperation between different organizations in the field of youth work varies depending on the regional legal framework. However, regional youth institutes typically collaborate with town halls, local youth associations and NGOs to design and implement programs that address the needs of young people in different regions.

In this context INJUVE, plays a vital role in fostering collaboration with a wide network of collaborations with different youth organizations and associations, ensuring that youth workers are central to the implementation of national youth policies.

A key body in this cooperation is the Youth Council of Spain (El Consejo de la Juventud de España, CJE), which promotes youth participation in political, cultural, social and economic matters in Spain.

The main objectives of the CJE are:

• Collaborating with social agents to achieve a global youth policy that can respond to the problems and concerns of the youth.
• Promoting participation and youth associations.
• Channelling the proposals of Spanish youth to the administration and society.
• Conducting studies and research that unveil the true nature of youth reality.
• Representing Spanish youth in the international youth organizations.
• Providing services and support for the youth organizations.
• Providing the instruments that respond to the demands of the youth for the development of their individual and collective objectives.

Furthermore, the INJUVE engages in two important dialogue platforms between youth and institutions:

1. The Governing Council of INJUVE: composed of representatives from youth organizations across Spain. It plays an essential role in overseeing the activities of INJUVE, promoting youth participation, and monitoring youth policies. The Council provides a platform for collaboration between INJUVE and youth associations, ensuring that youth work reflects the needs and priorities of young people.
2. Tripartite Commission for Youth Employment: Advises INJUVE on youth employment policies, involving social agents, trade unions, and employers. This body helps align youth employment programs with the needs of both young people and the labour market, ensuring that youth workers are integrated into public employment services and are supported in providing youth with practical, career-oriented advice.