Study visit on combating long-term unem­ployment held in Nantes

The Community of Practice on Employment, Education and Skills under the ESF Social Innovation+ Initiative hosted a study visit that brought together European stakeholders from 15 EU countries.

The event was a con­ti­nua­tion of efforts initiated in March 2024 with a webinar that provided an overview of long-term unem­ployment and job guarantee programs. Jörg Markowitsch, thematic expert for the Community of Practice, empha­si­zed the importance of such visits, stating, “You can write as many studies as possible, but if people can’t see it with their own eyes and talk to those involved on the ground, it remains an abstract idea.”

The event started in Pont-Château, with Mayor and President of the Local Committee for Employment Danielle Cornet show­ca­sing local efforts. The French project “Territoires zéro chômeur de longue durée” (TZCLD) presented its stra­te­gies and outcomes. Participants also toured Espacea’s inno­va­ti­ve employment solutions. On the second day, par­ti­ci­pan­ts engaged with long-term unem­ployed indi­vi­du­als and local officials from Nantes Métropole.

The study visit enriched practice exchanges and streng­the­ned com­mit­ment to inclusive employment in Europe. “I think this event has signi­fi­cant­ly increased the moti­va­ti­on to par­ti­ci­pa­te in the current Social Innovation+ initia­ti­ve and ESFA tender on zero long-term unem­ployment initia­ti­ves,” sum­ma­ri­zed Jörg Markowitsch. “Thanks to the 24 million euros that the European Commission is investing in further expe­ri­ments over the next three years, we will have more, even competing, approa­ches to tackling long-term unem­ployment. As rese­ar­chers, we have the task of proving what works best.”

Find out more about the event here.