Project STAY-ON (https://www.stay-on.eu/stayon/ ) was implemented by 8 partners from 7 European Union countries. The project was invested by the European Investment Bank within the framework of the activity SIFTA – Social Inclusive Finance Technical Assistance: https://advisory.eib.org/about/service/social-inclusive-finance-technical-assistance.htm.

The project started in 2021 and ended in 2024. It was implemented in the Azores Islands (Portugal). On this occasion, the final results and outcomes of the project were presented. As in the EDUCIRC2022 project, it was necessary to survey those under 18 years of age because they are engaged in work activities in rural areas, so young people over 15 years of age were included. The project found that there is a great risk due to the departure of young people from rural areas, and the main goal of the project is to bring young people closer to the opportunities to invest and start their own entrepreneurial venture, so that they have a basis to remain in their rural areas.

The research was conducted on a sample of just over 600 young people and it turned out that the majority do not have enough education, that they often come from poor and migrant families, and that the level of digital literacy is very low. There are not enough conditions for employment in rural areas, there is no good connection between schools and the business sector and there is a high share of jobs where young people work in unfavorable conditions (too long hours, insufficient job security).

Accordingly, training programs were organized with the aim of improving the problems observed, as well as introducing them to positive entrepreneurial examples. After the project was completed, the feedback survey showed that there was progress, as 42.2% of the participants were employed and 7% returned to school to continue their education.

Young people from rural areas stated that they felt abandoned and that no one was dealing with their problems. Therefore, it is an absolute priority to implement activities that will target young people in rural areas and solve the problems they face. Above all, it is necessary to establish quality contact with them and establish a relationship of trust.

The event was attended by the project manager, Prof. Dr. Mirjana Radovanović. She briefly introduced the participants to the project and its main results regarding young people in rural areas in Serbia, and actively participated in the discussion.