Political economy of youth and youth-based budgeting proposal

Abstract

The exacerbation of the problems experienced by young people in the last half century and the discussions on the use of youth labor lead to an increase in interest in research on youth. As a result of this interest, the political economy approach to youth problems offers an important perspective on the subject. Thus, it becomes possible to address the problems experienced by youth on a broad level. In this sense, the study examines the political economy of youth within the mainstream and heterodox approaches. Mainstream approaches focus more on the prolongation of young people's transition to adulthood, the problems young people face in their transition from education to business life, and the increase in inequality between generations. It aims to reduce the disadvantaged positions of young people in the face of these problems by trying to empower them. Heterodox approaches, on the other hand, associate the main source of the problems experienced by young people with the functioning mechanism of the economic system, within a critical framework. Thus, it aims to examine the youth issue not only as problems faced temporarily by the population in a certain age range, but also by establishing the relationship between these problems and the economic system.  In other words, the problems experienced by young people are caused by the capitalist operating mechanism itself. The unequal environment created by the dominant system leads to a decrease in the share of young people in the income distribution. The heterodox approach examines these issues within the context of deindustrialization, work intensification and youth labor as a result of neoliberal economic policies. From this point of view, it is important to examine the relationship between social relations and local dynamics that shape the economic, political, cultural and social areas of youth's living conditions in the context of the public budget. Therefore, this study examines the relationship between the public budget and the social position of youth within mainstream and heterodox approaches. In this context, the "youth-based budgeting concept" proposal is developed as a means of making young people visible. Youth-based budget suggests that budget programs and policies should be organized on a youth-based basis, the reflections of this should be examined systematically, and resource distribution within the public sphere should be organized on a youth-based basis.