The number of participants in youth work programs has remained significantly below the pre-pandemic level in 2023. According to the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis), a total of 7.3 million children, young people, and young adults participated in the programs supported by the federal government, states, and municipalities. This is a decrease of 1.3 million compared to 2019, when 8.6 million young people participated.
In comparison to 2021, when the number of participants had reached a record low of 4.4 million, the number of participants in 2023 increased by 2.9 million, or 65%, to 7.3 million. The federal government, states, and municipalities supported a total of 139,000 programs with approximately 2.3 billion euros.
The number of programs also increased in 2023, rising by nearly 32,300, or 30%, to around 139,000 programs. This is still fewer than before the pandemic, with 157,000 programs recorded in 2019.
On average, according to Destatis, 52 young people participated in each program in 2023. The most popular programs were games (36%), social and religious activities (23%), sports (23%), and art and culture (22%). In two-thirds of the cases, events or projects were carried out with the young people (67%), such as leisure activities, concerts, or festivals. In a further 17% of the cases, group offers were provided, such as weekly group sessions at the church, and in 16% of the cases, open offers, such as youth centers or youth cafes.
The majority of the programs (69%) were carried out by recognized free providers of child and youth welfare, including churches, welfare, or youth associations. A further one-third (31%) was carried out by public providers, such as municipalities or youth offices. About 16% of the programs were carried out in cooperation with schools, with primary schools being particularly active (8%). In around 1,400 cases, it was international youth work programs, with the majority of or all foreign participants coming from France (15%), Poland (11%), Spain (5%), Turkey (5%), or Italy (4%).