The number of young people aged 16-29 who are neither working nor studying was 138,400 in 2024. This is a share of 8 percent, up from 7.7 percent the previous year, according to new statistics from the Swedish Agency for Youth and Civil Society (MUCF). That these are not the latest year's figures is explained by the compilation of data from several agencies, which creates a lag.
The increase is small but still important, explains Magnus Jägerskog, Director General of MUCF.
If you go back to 2010 and up until now, there have been declining numbers. This could be the beginning of a possible trend reversal, but we will only see that in the longer term.
Economic uncertainty
What could be behind the increase is still unclear, but Magnus Jägerskog points to a possible explanation.
This period has been marked by inflation and economic uncertainty. The upturn coincides with that, but it is important to follow this going forward.
The largest increase is among foreign-born young men aged 16–24, where the proportion has increased from 10 percent in 2023 to 11.3 percent the following year. Among foreign-born young women of the same age, the proportion has increased from 9.8 percent to 10.5 percent.
Looking back, it is among those born abroad that the positive development has been greatest. Since 2010, the proportion who are neither studying nor working has decreased from 21.7 percent to 13.9 percent, while among those born in Sweden it has remained at about the same level - 7.4 percent in 2010 and 6.3 percent in 2024.
Methods that work
Young people with disabilities or mental health problems, those born abroad and those from socio-economically disadvantaged areas are overrepresented in the group that neither works nor studies.
Magnus Jägerskog emphasizes the importance of sticking to the methods that have been shown to work when you now see a possible trend break.
For example, starting with powerful early interventions at school to ensure that young people complete their education. Completing upper secondary school is a watershed in the Swedish labour market.
Young people aged 16–29 who were neither working nor studying in 2024 (previous year's statistics in brackets):
Number: 138,400 (131,800).
Share: 8 percent (7.7 percent).
Percentage among girls: 7.5 percent (7.2 percent).
Percentage among boys: 8.6 percent (8.1 percent).
Proportion among native-born: 6.3 percent (6.0 percent), for girls the figure is 5.4 percent (5.2 percent), and 7.1 percent among boys (6.7 percent).
Proportion among foreign-born: 13.9 percent (13.3 percent), 14.5 percent among girls (14.2 percent) and 13.4 percent for boys (12.6 percent).
The statistics are based on register data across the entire population aged 16–29 and are taken from, for example, Statistics Sweden (SCB) and the Swedish Social Insurance Agency.
Source: MUCF
