The aim of the project was to improve the capacity of youth workers to deliver qualitative learning programs and activities fostering entrepreneurial competencies among young people through a set of four innovative tools and methods developed through the project. In order to achieve this, the following objectives must have been reached: - SO1: To support, by the end of the project, the activity of 300 youth workers from Italy, Germany, Romania, and Spain to foster entrepreneurial competencies among young people as part of their activity. -SO2: To improve, by the end of the project, the entrepreneurial competencies of 24 young people from Italy, Germany, Romania, and Spain through a business idea competition and a training activity. -SO3: To foster the development of management abilities and entrepreneurial mindset of 40 young people from Italy, Germany, Romania, and Spain, by implementing a total of 4 local volunteering projects in their communities, by the end of the project. -SO4: To support, by the end of the project, the capacity building of the four partner organizations involved in the project, by developing new services in the field of entrepreneurship for the target groups they serve.
Entrepreneurial education is very often deficient or poorly implemented in many systems as part of the standard educational offer. However, interest has grown over years among young people to become more independent and choose an entrepreneurial career as an alternative to the typical one. This was also reflected in a study that had been conducted prior to the project application by the Romanian organization. 290 young people, aged between 18 and 30 years old participated in the study. It was concluded that the majority of young people consider becoming an entrepreneur (62%), as it seems to provide multiple benefits. However, only a small percentage claimed they had the knowledge to set up a business (23,8%), or they had the competencies to manage one (36,5%). The main obstacles identified refer to the lack of training (72,1%), lack of financial resources and access to financing (59,3%), or the limited experience (51,7%). The learning needs can be addressed by youth workers and trainers, only if they are provided with tools and appropriate guidance. Based on these needs, the consortium decided to create tools and methodologies to help the people working with youth in creating interactive and insightful learning contexts.