In Denmark and many other European countries, young people from deprived communities confront serious challenges from, for instance, mainstream media, lack or insufficient schooling and unemployment. Already from its inception, the Aarhus Urban II programme identified the empowerment of young people as one of the most essential elements in stable and successful community regeneration - not least that children and young people represent the future for the wider community and the country as such. In addition, the Urban II programme is in close cooperation with projects initiated by social housing associations, aimed at creating employment opportunities within and in relation to deprived community neighbourhoods where some inhabitants enjoy a long tradition of business involvement and entrepreneurship from their country of origin.

Children and young people from ethnic minority groups confront challenges with regard to pursuing education. Parents and their children do not always understand the education and school system. Therefore they misunderstand the system and the education and employment system misunderstand them.

In 2004 the Aarhus Urban II programme co-sponsored two major interrelated projects that systematically focus on young people of ethnic minority background in deprived communities and one that focus on business empowerment and entrepreneurship. This happened with initiatives an participation from local resource persons, neighbourhood associations, parents, informal networks and the young people themselves. It took place in a district of the Danish town called Aarhus. This area is characterised by having a concentration of citizens with social and economic challenges and a high number of citizens with refugee and immigrant background

The situation in poor neighbourhoods is that a group of young people gets excluded very early in their lives and may never use their full potentials. In order to avoid and address such a situation the practice has been to:

Through evaluation, the before and after effect has been measured and improvement is very obvious. - Hundreds of parents and young citizens in the neighbourhood were empowered. - A number of youth role models (educated or during education and employed) emerged and inspired those that were reluctant towards planning the future. - More significantly, young people began to plan their future which otherwise would seem quite troublesome.

EU co-financed the Urban programme (a regeneration programme) and thereby the education and employment guidance project.

The Urban Programme in Aarhus.

Urban programme Aarhus
Denmark
Ahmed El-Ahmed, tel. 0045 89 48 76 00

Guidance and Consultation Centre
Denmark
Iman Yacoub

01/10/2003

case

Urban Policy

Social inclusion & integration