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Youth work Through youth work and youth policy, the central government and the municipalities work to improve young people’s living conditions and encourage the young to engage in civic activities. The Ministry of Education and Culture prepares is...

Local youth work Youth work and youth policy fall within the remit of municipalities and are implemented in multiprofessional cooperation. The local authorities may also work together and provide youth services regionally. The Ministry of Educatio...

Youth workshops and outreach youth work Youth workshops are part of the Youth Guarantee, under which every pupil who has completed basic education is guaranteed a place in an educational institution, apprenticeship training, workshop, rehabilitati...

National Youth Work and Youth Policy Programme The National Youth Work and Youth Policy Programme is a horizontal programme, which the Government adopts every four years with the aim of promoting a good environment for young people to grow up and ...

Youth work centres of expertise Youth work centres of expertise develop and promote competence, expertise and communications in the youth sector. The Ministry of Education and Culture develops youth sector services and expertise by supporting the ...

Youth The Ministry of Education and Culture is responsible for coordinating and developing youth work and youth policy and creating prerequisites for it in central government. This work is carried out in cooperation with a range of different secto...

Youth sector organisations The Ministry of Education and Culture funds part of the national youth sector organisations’ expenditure by granting them discretionary general transfers annually. Youth sector organisations comprise: youth organisations...

National youth centres The youth centres form a network specialised in youth work. The Ministry of Education and Culture subsidises the centres. Youth centres provide curriculum-supporting camp and nature packages for school groups, social youth w...

Youth research and monitoring of young people’s living conditions Youth research is multidisciplinary research focusing on young people that emphasises such areas as research in youth cultures, consumer research, and research in exclusion, ethnic ...

Ministry of Education and Culture Minister of Youth, Sport and Physical Activity Mika Poutala Christian Democrats in Finland Minister of Youth, Sport and Physical Activity Poutala is responsible for matters covered by the Department of Youth and S...

Central government funding for youth work The Ministry of Education and Culture funds youth work from the proceeds of gaming activities and budget funding. Appropriations and budget items in the youth sector in Youth work has been allocated EUR 71...

Culture, physical activity and youth work facilitate integration Cultural services, public libraries, activities for young people and sports activities make it easier to integrate into the society. Participation in such activities provides an easy...

Youth Act 2017 The objectives of the Act is to promote young people’s social inclusion and opportunities for exerting an influence; improve their skills and capabilities to function in society; support their growth, independence and sense of commu...

Inclusion and participation of young people The Ministry of Education and Culture works to promote young people’s participation and inclusion, while the Government Programme pledges to assess the impacts of decisions on children and families. One ...

EU and international cooperation in the youth sector The objective of international and European cooperation is to develop youth policy and support youth work through networking and exchanges of good practices. The Ministry of Education and Cultur...

Policies and development related to youth affairs The Ministry of Education and Culture is responsible for the overall management, coordination and development of youth work and youth policy and for creating general prerequisites in central govern...

7.10.2025 | Minister of Youth, Sport and Physical Activity Mika Poutala will attend the 10th Council of Europe Conference of Ministers responsible for Youth on 8–10 October. At the meeting, the ministers will assess developments in youth policy in light of the Reykjavík Declaration and agree on future priorities. The aim is for the ministers to adopt a final declaration and commit to a framework on a youth perspective within the Council of Europe.

25.11.2025 | The EU ministers responsible for education, youth, culture and sport will meet in Brussels on 27–28 November. The Council’s agenda includes vocational education and training, the European Education Area, the Erasmus+ programme, the importance of culture for democratic resilience, the AgoraEU programme, and democracy and transparency in sport. The Oulu European Capital of Culture 2026 project will also be presented at the meeting.

24.11.2025 | The Nordic Baltic Youth Summit will be held in Finland for the first time. The summit participants will draft policy recommendations addressing challenges related to the green transition and youth employment and submit them to Minister of Youth, Sport and Physical Activity Mika Poutala.

Duties and objectives of the Ministry of Education and Culture In Finland the Ministry of Education and Culture is responsible for the development of education, science, cultural, sport and youth policies, and for international cooperation in thes...