Ljubljana

Ljubljana is the capital of Slovenia and encompasses about 1/7th of the country’s population, that is to say 280 000 inhabitants. Ljubljana is the political and cultural heart of the Slovenian nation. In 2016 Ljubljana was awarded the title of European Green Capital. Almost 75% of the city area is covered by green areas, 20 % of which are protected and Ljubljana has as much as 542 m2 of public green areas per inhabitant.

The local economy is well integrated with European supply chains and enjoys a good mix of activities, with industrial production jobs (pharmaceuticals, petrochemicals for instance) being the biggest type of employment. Other sectors like IT, health, and construction are important sources of employment.

In the country and more specifically in the capital city, there has been a shift from conjectural to structural unemployment and the focus has been made on those farthest from the labor market and on the long-term unemployed.

Being a capital city and a major university centre, Ljubljana has significant attractive factors for the youth. The general approach of the Slovene government has been to move away from a traditional ‘study then work’ pathway, towards more young people getting job experiences during their time in university, more job placements and more apprenticeships.

Youth employment has become a municipality concern in the last years so a lot is still new, hence the value of being part of the JobTown 2 URBACT network. In particular, the city administration is working to complement the actions taken by the central government.

Housing is also something of a problem as too much of the existing stock is designed for large families and not suitable or affordable for young singles. This, in conjunction with a wide range of socio-economic-cultural factors, is making ‘youth’ gradually extending. Indeed, it becomes increasingly common for young people to stay living with their families until they are thirty years old or so.