The Free Time Occupation programme for young people - "OTL/J" - has registered a total of 2930 young people who will participate in 1187 projects developed during the summer period. This represents an increase of 800 young people compared to number of participants recorded in the previous year, corresponding to a growth of 36%.
This year, the global investment in all sub-programmes and projects developed under the 2015 edition of the Free Time Occupation programme reached 551,300 thousand Euros, which is far higher than the amount allocated in 2014 (445, 519 thousand Euros).
All young people whose applications were approved will participate in the programmes developed under this initiative. Those who were not placed due to the lack of projects are currently awaiting their integration in other projects.
"Youth Solidarity" and "Holiday Occupation" are the two most sought-after sub-programmes by young people.
Developed by the Regional Government, through the Regional Directorate for Youth, this programme aims to encourage the inclusion of young people in active life and provide participants with the opportunity to have a professional experience that will be a first contact with the labour market.
This initiative aims to provide young people with an innovative way to occupy their free time, contributing to their non-formal education, the acquisition of knowledge, norms and values for the exercise of a responsible citizenship. Furthermore, participants will have social and professional experiences that will be decisive for the education of skilled and responsible citizens.
The OTL/J programme for the 2015 summer begins on July 6 and ends on August 28.
For four weeks, participants will fulfil the tasks assigned under their respective projects in a 17.5 hour-week.
OTL /J is targeted at young people aged between 14 and 23, who are enrolled in the 9th form or who have already completed it (required for some programmes).
The results of the applications can be found on the website http://www.otl.drj.azores.gov.pt/.