THE ROLE OF VOCATIONAL EDUCATION AND TRAINING IN THE YOUTH EMPLOYABILITY

The current slow economic development and high unemployment in the EU have increased the need for policies that have a real impact in the short term. The pressure of high unemployment, especially high youth unemployment is growing. Investment in skills is a challenge and the policy agenda in Europe has put more labour market relevant vocational education and training (VET) in the scope of strategies for economic competitiveness. VET is designed to enable participants to develop practical skills and understanding needed to find employment in a particular occupation. It is at the core of Europe’s response to the economic crisis and is an essential part of the Europe 2020 strategy. In Europe, about half of all jobs require a medium level qualification, primarily acquired through VET. There is no single European VET system. It is very diverse with the variations in systems, providers, regions and sectors. Croatia is involved in VET modernization through new regulations in order to speed up the process of change. This article provides a discussion of the role of VET in the youth employability in the EU and Croatia. It poses two main goals: first, systematically analyzing and presenting the issue of youth employability and the second, analyzing the system of Croatian VET in the European environment.