Youth enterprise and youth unemployment in European Union member and associated countries

Can East-Central Europe's youth unemployment be solved by encouraging and a ssisting those concerned to start their own enterprises? It is argued that in the 1990s young people in the new market economies had exceptional oppor tunities to succeed in business. However, as the new market economies matur e, the young unemployed will become a section of the population least equip ped to succeed in business, as is the case across Western Europe. It is fur ther argued that the particular type of youth unemployment that has spread in the new market economies will not be solved by creating low quality jobs . Young people expect, and are prepared to wait for, good quality employmen t. It is concluded that the best hope for matching demand and supply in Eas t-Central Europe's youth labour markets lies in developing some of the exis ting micro-enterprises into quality SMEs. This is the way in which policies towards the self-employed are most likely to contribute to hauling down yo uth unemployment.