The Regional Secretary of the Presidency for Parliamentary Affairs assured today in Horta that the Government of the Azores will move forward in 2015 with the interventions to renew the Youth Hostels on the islands of Terceira and São Miguel in order to improve mobility conditions for Azorean youngsters.

Isabel was heard by the Committee on Social Affairs and Parliamentary Affairs of the Legislative Assembly on the Regional Annual Plan and Budget for 2015. She stressed that the Government aims to maintain "some investment components that are essential to support youngsters, namely the support to youth mobility and associations."

Accordingly, the Regional Secretary revealed that a new programme, titled "Prepara o teu regresso a casa" (Prepare your return home), will be launched in 2015. This initiative is addressed at youngsters who leave their community of residence to continue their studies.

"This is not a financial support programme," Isabel Rodrigues said, adding that this measure is intended to create "interaction mechanisms" that allow youngsters "to have an in-depth knowledge about the programmes that are available in the Region to stimulate the entry of youngsters in the labour market, namely traineeship programmes or the support to youth entrepreneurship."

"This programme will necessarily include interaction strategies between the regional business sector and youngsters so that entrepreneurs can know the profile of the youngsters who have completed their studies. In turn, these youngsters will have the possibility to know the opportunities provided by Azorean companies," said the government official.

As for the support to the Media, Isabel Rodrigues revealed that the Government of the Azores "will maintain" the PROMEDIA Programme, whose budget will increase 17% in 2015.

The Regional Assistant Secretary of the Presidency for Parliamentary Affairs justified the increase in funding for the programme with the need to "reinforce the support to the technological modernisation of private Media in the Region," taking into consideration the challenges that this sector currently faces.