Anne Rabbitte (Galway East, Fianna Fail)
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666. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the reason her Department has not published a national strategy on youth work. [24289/17]

Katherine Zappone (Dublin South West, Independent)
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The National Youth Strategy 2015-2020 was published in October 2015 and was developed in close consultation with statutory youth interests and the voluntary youth organisations and services that work with young people.

The strategy sets out Government’s aims for young people, aged 10 to 24 years, so that they are active and healthy, achieving their full potential in learning and development, safe and protected from harm, have economic security and opportunity and are connected and contributing to their world. The Strategy identifies some fifty priority actions to be delivered by Government departments, state agencies and by others, including the voluntary youth services over 2015 to 2017. They include actions to address issues which are a high priority for young people themselves. Priorities include, reform of the youth funding programmes in line with the recommendations in the Value for Money and Policy Review of Youth Programmes to ensure improved outcomes for young people, opportunities for those young people furthest from the labour market through measures such as the Youth Employability Initiative and the National Strategy on Children and Young People’s Participation in Decision-making.