This document discusses challenges facing urban youth in Belgium. It notes rising diversity in cities and high rates of early school leaving, unemployment, and child poverty. It presents data showing educational and economic disadvantages in Brussels, Antwerp, and Ghent compared to the Flemish Community overall. The document recommends innovating youth programs through competence-based empowerment and integrated projects. It emphasizes starting earlier to identify talents, making schools more open to environmental contexts, and redefining teacher-student relationships.

1. Foundations for building an integrated Urban Youth Policy
Gent 2009

2. The city grows – discolours – Gets greener
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0102030400 0 10 20 30 40 50 0510152025 0 5 10 15 20 25 051015 0 5 10 1
Brussels Antwerp Gent
Men – women Men – women Men – women
1998-2008

3. The city grows – discolours – Gets greener
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26%
11%
7%
28%
15%
9%
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
Brussel Antwerpen Gent
2003
2008
% non-Belgians of the population

4. Youth – The future. With which perspective?
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Early school leavers
18-24 years old, no longer at school, no secondary schooling

5. Youth – The future. With which perspective?
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Pupils with at least one year schooling gap in the
first year of secondary school
35%
39%
50%
21%
35%
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%
45%
50%
Gent Antwerpen Brussels Gewest Vlaamse
Gemeenschap
Franse
Gemeenschap

6. Youth – The future. With which perspective?
• Socio-economische situatie
• Onderwijs(achterstand)
• Arbeidsmarkt
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Unemployment rate in the Belgian big cities
Year average 2008

7. Youth – The future. With which perspective?
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Youth unemployment rate in the big cities year average 2008
17,7% 18,6%
29,8%
18,4% 19,7%
33,7%
18,0% 19,2%
31,7%
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
Gent Antwerpen Brussels Gewest
mannen
vrouwen
totaal

8. 19
24
35
38 40
18
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
Gent Antwerpen Brussels
Gewest
Luik Charleroi België
Youth – The future. With which perspective?
% children en young people (0-17) in households
without income from employment
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Bron: KBSZ, 2005

9. Policy plan 2010-2012
• Targets 3 X 3
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Content
Participation in urban
life with own life
experience as a base
Competence approach
for development in
several fields
Internal and external
sharing of expertise on
participation and
competences
Management
Financial management HR Communication policy
Environment
In cities and urban International Networking

10. JES vzw
• JES vzw
- Urban lab for young people
- Gent, Brussels, Antwerp
- 120 employees (4,1mio €; 60 fundinglines)
- JES-DNA
» Competences
» Participation
» Integrated
» Innovation
» Urban
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11. JES vzw
• Non-formal education and training
• Youthwork and leisure time
- YCC
- Youthculture (music and multimedia)
- Urban adventure
- …
• Streetcornerwork and participation projects in
public space
• Formal education and training (+18) for
unemployed young people
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12. Formal education projects (school)
• Learing and working (15-18y)
- 2 days school
- 2 days working or competence-devellopment
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13. Formal education projects (school)
• Youth Competence centres
- Schoolmediating
- Competence awarness and school orientation
- Support in school works
- Competence development in leisure time and
leadership training
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14. Formal education projects (school)
• Urban classes
- For teachers of primary schools to discover the
neighbourhood of their children, with participation of
children and their parents
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15. Signals and comments
• Target group: vulnerable, migrants (2e and 3th
generation), new immigrants

16. Signals and comments
• Waste of talent
- Lack of awarness of talent and competences
- Misfit in schoolorientation

17. Signals and comments
• Personnal development and education
- Lack of confidence and self-esteem
- Narrow perspectives
- Defaitism
» Misfit of attitude and values in current society

18. Signals and comments
• Lack of support
- Who support children and young people in school?
» School itself?
» Parents.
- Role of youthwork
- Role of counseling (computers, laptops, place, moral
support,…)

19. Signals and comments
• Role of CLB
- Lot of youngsters complain about guidance and
support of CLB (sometimes more than teachers).

20. Signals and comments
• Misfit between teachers and and their
environment.
- Middleclass value orientated framework in
disadvantaged neighbourhoods
» (cfr stadskracht: where teachers learn about the
children and their context)

21. Signals and comments
• Co-operation with school(structures and umbrella-
organisations)= difficult
- (self-)protection
- Conservatisme
- Closed to environment

22. Recommandations
• Need to innovateand and to co-operate
- Social work (youtwork, sportswork,…)
- Competence-based empowerment and awarness
- Open mindset
- Integrated projects
- DIALOGUE!!

23. Recommandations
• Starting earlier to detect competences,
aspirations and talents in order to make the right
schoolorientation
• Work togethether with other organisations whou
could tell about talents and aspirations.

24. Recommandations
• Redefine the realition between teacher and the
teached one (especially in digital world)
• Implementation of acquired expertise by social
work in high school (teaching high school).

25. Recommandations
• Other learning systems
- more working than learning
- other systems of working and learning