298. Deputy Dominic Hannigan asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government if he will provide an update on the Youth Employment Initiative under the Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme; the budget of the Programme; the allocation to each Programme implementer; the key objectives; the projected number of young persons reached by the Programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29253/15]

My Department’s Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme (SICAP), the successor programme to the Local and Community Development Programme (LCDP), was rolled out across communities on 1 April 2015.

SICAP is one of my Department’s key priorities and will operate for the 9 month period for 2015, with funding of €28 million, as outlined in the table. This includes an allocation of €2 million under the European Structural Funds (ESF) Programme for Employability, Inclusion and Learning (PEIL) 2014-2020 and €2 million under the Youth Employment Initiative.

The aim of SICAP to reduce poverty, promote social inclusion and equality through local, regional and national engagement and collaboration. The objective of the SICAP activities proposed for ESF funding is to support young unemployed people under 25 years of age from disadvantaged groups and communities onto an effective pathway towards employment by providing a series of activities locally delivered under the Youth Employment Initiative.

During 2015, a national figure of some 4,000 young unemployed people will be supported through a range of defined activities under the programme, including training, job preparing/job search, work placements and mentoring.