PASOK MEP Nikolas Farantouris submitted a written question to the European Commission calling for specific measures to tackle youth unemployment, with a focus on Greece, which has one of the highest rates in Europe.
The PASOK MEP notes that since 2014, the EU has allocated approximately €25 billion from the Cohesion Policy to address youth unemployment. However, as the European Court of Auditors (ECA) notes, many of the funded measures do not focus on the long-term integration of young people into the labor market.
As Nikolas Farantouris points out, enhancing the effectiveness of EU-funded measures is even more necessary for countries like Greece, which has one of the highest youth unemployment rates in the EU, while quality jobs with decent wages and good working conditions remain the goal.
In light of the above, the Greek MEP calls on the Commission:
a) Specific measures to enhance the effectiveness of funded initiatives aimed at tackling youth unemployment.
b) To provide targeted assistance to countries, such as Greece, that continue to face major challenges in tackling youth unemployment and creating quality jobs.
Speaking from Brussels, Nikolas Farantouris noted that “youth unemployment undermines social cohesion, growth, and innovation, and exacerbates the demographic crisis and the depopulation of rural areas.
Countries like Greece, which have the highest rates of youth unemployment, urgently need action. I call on the Commission to take measures to address the internal shortcomings of Member States through harmonized and targeted actions.”