Ινστιτούτο Ανάπτυξης Επιχειρηματικότητας (iED)

The HELIOS project has as its main thematic objective the promotion of social inclusion and the fight against poverty and as a priority the professionalization of young people not in education, employment and training (NEETS) and women. The overall objective of the project is to contribute to tackling social exclusion and poverty among vulnerable groups by identifying the sector with the greatest potential for development and by providing skills to young people not participating in education, employment and training to meet the needs of this sector.
 Specific sub-objectives are 1) to increase the employability of young people belonging to this group (up to 30 years old) and women (of all ages) by providing these target groups with marketable skills to prepare them for skills-based occupations, piloted in the context of the blue and circular economy, 2) to better link the business sector with the labour market, by promoting links between market needs, technical and vocational education and training institutions and the labour market actors, and 3) to improve the quality of life of young people in the labour market.

The target audience of the HELIOS project consists of:

• Young NEETs and unemployed women 
• Technical and vocational education and training (TVET) institutions and local enterprises from the Blue and Circular Economy sector
• Tourism enterprises and local authorities

The official start date of the HELIOS project is 1 September 2019 and is expected to be completed by the end of December 2022, after a 3-month extension that was secured. 

One of the most pressing joint challenges for the Mediterranean Basin region is to create inclusive growth and boost the labour market, as well as to reduce the high rates of youth non-participation in education, employment and training (NEETs) and the severe skills mismatch that prevails today. The HELIOS project provides a new strategy for implementing measures to mitigate high levels of NEETs in any given severely affected region. The methodology proposed within the project starts with a preliminary needs analysis of the requirements of the local economy together with the identification of the main sub-groups of young NEETs and the identification of the best methods to reach and engage them. For the piloting of the actions and innovative approach of the HELIOS project, the blue and circular economy (BaCE) has been identified as the selected economic sector with the greatest potential for regenerative economic development. The main results will be the following: 
- a new approach to engage vulnerable youth and women through social media tools
- curricula for innovative targeted and tailored skills training courses oriented to the specific needs of the BaCE labour market and the needs of NEETs
mentoring and counselling activities on social skills and the creation of e-learning tools to facilitate skills development.
The main activities and deliverables of the project are: 
1. Profiling of young people not in education, employment and training (NEETs) - analysis of the current situation and methodology
2. Profiling of the economic sector (blue and circular economy) - analysis of the current situation
3. Mentoring activities with leading consultants
4. Initiatives to better link technical and vocational education and training institutions with market needs
5. Development of targeted labour market-oriented training courses
6. Development of innovative learning tools supported by new technologies: e-learning tools, e-learning platform
7. Implementation of cross-border traineeships
8. Design and implementation of social employment initiatives in cooperation with local public organisations. 

Website: https://www.enicbcmed.eu/projects/helios 

The implementation of the HELIOS project stems from the cooperation among ARCES Association (Italy), Fisheries and Blue Growth District - COSVAP (Italy), Catalonia Delegation (Spain), Institute of Entrepreneurship Development (Greece), TUNISIAN UNION OF AGRICULTURE AND FISHERY (Tunisia), University College of Applied Sciences Planning and External Relations Affairs (Palestine), and The National Center for Agricultural Research and Extension (Jordan). 

As the HELIOS project is a partnership between Italy, Spain, Tunisia, Jordan, Palestine and Greece, its actions are geographically relevant to all the countries in the consortium. For Greece, the main place of action is the region of Larissa, where the organisation participating in the project is based. 

The main results through the HELIOS project will be the following:                     
- A new approach to engage vulnerable young people and women through social media tools
- curricula for innovative targeted and tailored skills training courses oriented to the specific needs of the BaCE labour market and the needs of NEETs
- guidance and counselling actions on social skills and the creation of e-learning tools to facilitate skills development.

Among the quantitative outputs that will result from the HELIOS project are the following: 

• 1 software for profiling the situation of NEETs in each involved area 
• 6 specific sector identified with high potential for employment within the blue and circular economy 
• 9 professional curricula oriented to the needs of the labour market
• 6 agreements between training institutions and BaCE businesses to better connect TVETs with market needs
• 1,720 NEETs and women trained in the Blue and Circular Economy
• 4 art events around the topic of the blue economy 
• 24 young people and women involved in cross-border traineeships

On the one hand, local economies will be enriched through an increase in the workforce trained according to the real needs of businesses, upgrading of the professional skills of the vulnerable unemployed and professional mobility across the Mediterranean region. On the other hand, it is expected that low-skilled people will increase their chances of finding a job. Finally, a stronger link will be established between the technical and vocational education and training institutions and the needs of local businesses.