i THE NATIONAL YOUTH AND SPORTS POLICY DOCUMENT ...

YOUTH POLICIES1. INTRODUCTIONThe dreams, ideals, remarkable visions and the energy young people posses areindispensable for the continuous development of the society they live in. Furthermore, theproblems young people face, are among the fundamental elements of problems andexpectations for today’s societies and future generations.It is estimated that the population of the world which was 6,9 billion in 2012 will be8,9 billion in 2050. This growth in population will occur mostly in underdeveloped anddeveloping countries. The population of the developed countries which are already aged willcontinue to grow older rapidly in the following years. In accordance with the STAT/05/48research of the European Commission, while the ratio of the elderly population within thetotal population in Europe was 16,4 % in 2004, it is estimated to be 29,9 % in 2050.Therefore, it is clear that having a young and dynamic population will become an economicand social advantage for countries in the following years.50,5 % of the population in Turkey is under the age of 30. By the end of 2011, youngpeople between the ages of 14 and 29 years constituted approximately 20 million of ourpopulation. In the event that population increase continues in its current state, 70% of thepopulation in Turkey will be at working age in 2023. Turkey is the country which has thehighest proportion of young people to the total population in Europe. Transforming thisdemographical structure into an advantage can only be possible with effective and qualifiedyouth oriented policies.Researches and long-term population projections (World Population in UN 2300)indicate that the young population in Turkey will begin to decrease by the year 2050. In thisstudy called World Population in 2300, it is estimated that there will be a significant decreasein the birth rates in Turkey as of 2050. In accordance with this statement, the birth rate whichwas 2,43 % in the period 2000-2005 will decrease to 1,85 % in the period between 2050 and2055. For this reason, taking measures to protect the current demographical opportunity isamong the primary targets of the government.1. 1. Definition of YouthYouth is a concept that should be discussed in a sociological meaning rather than justbiological. The definition of youth is made according to the era, socio-economicdevelopments, culture and traditions of societies. Therefore, it is not possible to mention asingle universally accepted age range for subjective youth definitions. When the conditions of4