Preventing and Addressing the NEET Phenomenon Through Entrepreneurial Education: The Potential Role of Social Impact Bonds

Entrepreneurial education plays a vital role in preventing both school dropouts and the NEET phenomenon, making funding for entrepreneurial edu-cation essential. Adequate financial resources are needed to sustain and enhance educational programs, especially in underserved areas where dropout risks are highest. This chapter first explores grant programs focused on preventing and addressing the NEET phenomenon in Italy, particularly through entrepreneurship education initiatives, both during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, the research examines Social Impact Bonds as potential strategic tools able to support these initiatives by engaging diverse stakeholders and the wider community, thereby fostering an inclusive development model. Through analysis of the Indigo Impact Bond Dataset, this chapter aims to highlight the scope and target populations of funded projects for NEETs in Europe, as well as to identify potential funding challenges for such projects. The analysis revealed two main issues with funding educational strategies aimed at NEETs. First, it is challenging to establish clear causal relationships between the implemented activities and the reduction of school dropouts. Second, preventive measures tend to be very costly, time-consuming, and require substantial human resources. Given the complexity of these preventive actions, and in line with the goals outlined in the United Nations Agenda 2030, funding programs should focus on prioritizing long-term perspectives to effectively address and reduce educational poverty and the NEET phenomenon.