Albania and Turkey were ranked as countries with high percentages of young people in the 15-29 age group in relation to the general population.

Eurostat made a ranking of European countries and regions, with a map identifying the regions that have the youngest people on the occasion of the year we just launched. 2022 has been declared the European Year of Youth, where a series of policies and initiatives are expected to be undertaken to increase youth productivity as the basis for sustainable development in the future.

As can be seen from the attached map, Albania and its three regions (North, Center and South) have more than 20% of its population aged 15-29. National statistics show that in 2021, young people in this age group accounted for 22.7% of the total population.

But a large part of the young population counted in the statistics are already in emigration. A Census for population measurement expected to be conducted in 2021 was postponed for this year.

Turkey, also with all its regions, had the youngest population in Europe of 15-29-year-olds accounting for over 20% of the total population. On 1 January 2020, across the EU, one in six people was aged 15 to 29, representing 73.6 million people of the total EU population (447.3 million).

Among EU member states, the Île-de-France region had the largest number of young people between the ages of 15 and 29 in 2020 (2.4 million).

This was followed by the regions of Lombardy (1.5 million), Andalusia (1.4 million), Catalonia and the Rhône-Alpes (both 1.2 million), and Madrid and Campania (both 1 million).

However, in terms of population size, the highest percentages of the 15- to 29-year-old age group in the EU were found in Guyana and Mayotte (both in France) and Groningen (in the Netherlands), where 23% of the population were young.

Further Cyprus, the capital of Denmark and the Spanish autonomous region Melilla had more young people in relation to the total population (each 21%).

On the other hand, the lowest percentages of young people in the EU were found in Chemnitz and Brandenburg in Germany (both 11%), Thuringia, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Saxony (all in Germany) and Asturias in Spain (12% each).

(Source: Monitor)