Institutional Practices And The Making Of NEET Status Among Migrant Youth In Southern Italy

Abstract

This article investigates how institutional practices and policy discourses co-produce the NEET (Not in Education, Employment or Training) condition among young people with migrant backgrounds in Southern Italy. Preliminary ISTAT data for 2025 show that 26.4% of foreign youth (aged 15–34) are classified as NEET, compared to 13.1% of their Italian counterparts. Based on twenty semi-structured interviews with professionals and twenty with young migrants, the study explores how bureaucratic rigidity, delayed recognition of qualifications, and legal and language barriers intersect to reinforce institutional exclusion. Adopting a post-structural[1] and critical policy lens, the analysis conceptualizes NEET not merely as a descriptive label but as a performative and institutional mechanism that actively shapes life trajectories. Findings reveal a systemic process of “NEET-ization” sustained by administrative routines, whereby young migrants are labeled and trapped in this status upon arrival. The article argues for an epistemic reversal to challenge the premise that inactivity is voluntary, highlighting the need for context-sensitive policies and inclusive recognition systems.