Youth policy

Over 1.4 million of Sweden´s inhabitants are young people between the ages of 13 and 25.

Youth policy is cross-sectoral and includes all the decisions and measures affecting the conditions of young people. National youth policy thus concerns young people´s life situations in a number of different areas, such as work, housing, education, health, leisure and influence.

The Ministry of Integration and Gender Equality is responsible for coordination of the Government´s youth policy, issues affecting youth organisations and international youth exchanges. The task of coordinating Government youth policy presupposes active cross-sectoral efforts within the Government Offices and vis-à-vis other agencies. It involves extensive contact with youth organisations, the Swedish Association of Local Authorities and Regions and a number of innovative youth projects. The central government agency, the National Board for Youth Affairs, is an important actor in implementing youth policy.

The objectives of the Government´s youth policy are to:

  • ensure that all young people have genuine access to welfare, and
  • ensure that all young people have genuine access to influence.

The work on coordinating and reporting progress so as to achieve these overall goals takes place in five main areas:

  1. Education and learning
  2. Work and means of support
  3. Health and vulnerability
  4. Influence and representation
  5. Culture and leisure

The objectives of national youth policy also govern international cooperation in the field of youth policy.

Minister responsible

Ministry responsible