Alma is 19 years old, she finished high school, full of plans and desire to work, stay in Bosnia and Herzegovina, build a life close to her family and friends. However, the months pass and the work does not come.
“While I’m looking for a job, I feel like school didn’t prepare me for today’s labor market. Another challenge is that I don’t have work experience, and that makes it even more difficult for me to apply for job offers,” says Alma, describing the reality of many young people in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
High unemployment, outdated education systems, lack of practical guidance – all this creates a feeling among young people that they are left to fend for themselves. The Youth Guarantee, an instrument of the European Union that has been operating in these countries for ten years and is achieving enviable results: reduced unemployment rates, greater mobility and competitiveness of young people on the labor market, responds to these challenges.
You don’t have to look far for successful examples: Albania launched the pilot phase of the program in 2023, and already in the first year, almost half of the 540 registered young people found employment or continued their education.
What exactly is the Youth Guarantee?
The program was launched by the Recommendation of the Council of Europe in 2013 and has since received strong political support because it was perceived as a response to high youth unemployment and the economic crisis.
The essence is simple: every young person up to the age of 25, within four months of finishing school, leaving formal education or losing a job, must be offered a quality opportunity – a job, internship, continuing education or vocational training.
In practice, this means that Alma would not send CVs for months without success, but the system would actively work with her: inviting her to trainings, connecting her with employers, helping her develop the skills the market is looking for. As a lifeline for young people as they face the challenges of an ever-changing and evolving market, or a promise that uncertainty will be turned into opportunities to acquire the necessary skills, find work and build a better future. Such a quick reaction of the system would prevent young people from becoming long-term unemployed – or what is often called the NEET category (youth who are not employed or in the process of education or training – Not in Education, Employment, or Training).
Why is the Youth Guarantee needed in Bosnia and Herzegovina?
In Bosnia and Herzegovina, young people are one of the most vulnerable sections of society. As Harun Šabanović from the Youth Council/Council of the Brčko District of Bosnia and Herzegovina points out, “young people are leaving the country in search of better opportunities because they do not have the security, quality employment or public services they deserve.”
This Council set before itself as one of the main tasks the promotion of the Youth Guarantee and they are one of the partners of the institutions in its implementation.
“We actively participated in the development of the Action Plan for the Brčko District of Bosnia and Herzegovina and are part of the Youth Guarantee working group. We try to include young people as much as possible in the decision-making process in order to improve the quality of life,” says Šabanović and adds:
“Too many young people left Bosnia and Herzegovina for us to miss opportunities like this.”
The fact that young people in the councils are directly involved in decision-making gives a special strength to this initiative. And young people demand from institutions full commitment, intersectoral cooperation and clear information on how they can get involved and what benefits they can expect. In return, they offer active work on finding the NEET category of young people as a target group and a contribution to greater promotion of this concept, which is still insufficiently known in our country.
“There was not enough promotion of this initiative. Young people must know that such a chance exists,” say the youth council in Brc.
How the Youth Guarantee can become a reality in Bosnia and Herzegovina
The introduction of the Youth Guarantee in Bosnia and Herzegovina requires the synchronized work of various institutions at all levels of government. This includes: the state level, the ministries of labor and education in both entities and Brčko District of BiH, employment institutes, youth councils and non-governmental organizations. The coordination of the program is carried out by the Ministry of Civil Affairs of Bosnia and Herzegovina, while professional and technical support to local institutions is provided by the Delegation of the EU to Bosnia and Herzegovina and the International Labor Organization.
The steps that must be taken in order for our country to gain access to this program and be able to use the IPA funds of 3 million euros, start from the adoption of the Implementation Plan at the state level. In order to reach that step, it was necessary for both entities and Brčko District of BiH to draw up their action plans.
The report of the Working Group on Youth Unemployment from BiH indicated that the existence of agreed priorities for employment at the level of the entire BiH would significantly facilitate the implementation of the Youth Guarantee. In addition, strong institutional support and internal coordination within public institutions, better categorization of the unemployed on official records, establishment of contact persons who will also be counselors for young people in employment offices, and more intensive cooperation with employers and parents are key.
It is clear that in a fragmented system, such as Bosnia and Herzegovina, there is no shortage of challenges. However, if Bosnia and Herzegovina wants to keep its youth, it must offer them concrete solutions, and the Youth Guarantee is an opportunity that should not be missed.
Exactly such solutions will be discussed at the Second thematic session on the position of youth in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which will be held on October 22, 2025, with the support of the Institute for Youth Development KULT, the Westminster Foundation for Democracy and the Youth Council of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The session will bring together key stakeholders from different sectors to jointly consider the most important issues shaping young people’s lives, including employment, education, housing policy, safety and mental health. The goal of the session is to encourage intersectoral cooperation and concrete steps in the implementation of policies and programs, including the Youth Guarantee, and to create opportunities for better inclusion of young people in society and the labor market, he writes. Klix.
