Problem addressed

Despite a dynamic local economy, the metropolitan area of Bologna continues to show structural vulnerabilities that hinder stable socio-economic integration pathways, particularly for young people and young women. Demographic data indicate a large and diverse target pool: in the Bologna area, people aged 15–34 exceed 85,500, of whom 41,173 are young women; within the same age group, more than 18,000 have foreign citizenship (around 21%), confirming a strongly international context in which language, administrative and network-access barriers can significantly affect opportunities. Even in a “strong” region such as Emilia-Romagna, economic vulnerability remains significant: in 2024, an estimated 6.4% of households are in relative poverty, a condition that for many young people translates into housing instability, intermittent income and dependence on family or relational networks, limiting their ability to invest in training and active job search.

In terms of activation, critical signals persist: in 2023, NEETs aged 15–29 in Emilia-Romagna were estimated at around 69.1 thousand, approximately 11% of the cohort, reflecting difficulties in accessing continuous pathways of guidance and skills development, often associated with isolation, reduced self-efficacy and fragmented labour market transitions. Even where youth unemployment rates do not appear extreme in aggregate values, the quality and stability of employment remain key challenges: in the province of Bologna, unemployment among 15–34-year-olds is reported at around 7.9%, yet contractual precariousness, underemployment and fragmented career paths make it difficult to build autonomy and medium-term life planning.

Vulnerabilities become even more evident when multiple risk factors overlap. The presence of more than 61,500 foreign residents in the city (around 16% of the population) highlights how integration pathways require specific and accessible tools, capable of supporting people who often lack reliable information, support networks and administrative skills to navigate services, rights and opportunities. For many young women, economic insecurity can further amplify conditions of dependency and relational vulnerability. Regional data show a significant and structured demand for support: in Emilia-Romagna in 2024, anti-violence centres recorded 5,965 women who contacted services and 12,802 total contacts, with 3,984 women “in pathway”, highlighting that access to services is only the first step and that continuous accompaniment towards autonomy is essential. In the Bologna metropolitan area, 1,318 new women were supported in 2023, confirming that younger age groups are concretely represented among those accessing services. At national level, the increase in contacts to the 1522 helpline recorded in the third quarter of 2024, with a strong growth in requests for information on services and protection tools, indicates that many people are in a phase of “searching for the right door” and need practical guidance, continuity and facilitated access.

Within this scenario, a systemic limitation emerges: public and territorial responses tend to be fragmented and often focused on short-term interventions, while many vulnerable young people need integrated pathways combining guidance, financial literacy, psycho-emotional support and accompaniment towards employment or self-employment opportunities. GrameenLab responds precisely to this gap, through a cross-cutting and intersectional approach that does not treat vulnerability as a single-issue condition, but as the result of the interaction between economic instability, housing pressure, lack of networks, psychological stress and low financial capability. The project builds personalised plans based on a structured assessment that combines a “reality plan” (constraints, resources, barriers, networks, administrative aspects) with an “expectations plan” (goals, motivations, skills, talents and future vision). This dual perspective allows aspirations to be translated into realistic steps, avoiding standardised solutions and reducing drop-out risk.

The intervention therefore integrates the tools that the context makes essential: financial education modules to support budgeting, debt prevention and awareness of rights and financial tools; coaching on soft skills, self-efficacy and decision-making capacity; labour market orientation and access to territorial opportunities; mentoring to transform skills and ideas into sustainable income pathways, including self-employment where appropriate; and, crucially, active accompaniment towards local services and networks to ensure continuity, accessibility and integrated case management. In a context where vulnerability risks turning into persistent exclusion, a personalised and intersectional empowerment model strengthens socio-economic autonomy and supports durable integration pathways capable of responding to the real complexity of beneficiaries’ lives.

Innovative solution

YunusLab’s innovative solution is a holistic, multidisciplinary pathway that is co-designed with municipalities and local social services to respond to young people’s real needs. Each participant is supported through a personalised support process built on active listening and shared goal-setting, helping them regain direction, motivation and agency. What makes the model distinctive is the integration of psychosocial empowerment with practical employability and entrepreneurship support, engaging multiple intersectional approaches. Alongside individual and group work to strengthen soft skills (such as self-esteem, stress management, self-efficacy and resilience), participants receive financial education and labour-oriented guidance, covering everyday money management (budgeting, saving, debt prevention) as well as concrete job-search skills like CV writing and interview simulations. 

The pathway also uses a learning-by-doing approach to help those interested in self-employment move from an idea to an actionable plan, through simplified business planning and connection to local support networks. The entire programme is grounded in a Theory of Change, with shared indicators and ongoing monitoring to keep the work aligned with measurable impact. Overall, the innovation lies in combining personal wellbeing, employability and entrepreneurial activation into one integrated model embedded in local public services, making it both scalable and transferable.

The YunusLab format (ex “GrameenLab”) was first implemented in 2021 and has since been adapted and applied across multiple projects and delivery settings in Italy and through EU-funded initiatives, maintaining the same core methodology based on integrated empowerment pathways combining financial education, soft skills development, counselling/orientation and entrepreneurship support. Each implementation has been tailored to the specific requirements of the call, funding scheme and target group.
In Italy, especially in the Bologna metropolitan area, the innovation has been adapted within locally funded initiatives supported by banking foundations (e.g., several Grameen Lab editions funded by Fondazione del Monte) and within partner-led programmes addressing specific vulnerabilities, including EmpowHer Wealth and LiberaMente (financial empowerment for women, including survivors of economic violence and women with disabilities), Currency Compass (financial literacy for adult migrants), NextStep (financial autonomy for people with disabilities), and FUTURE – Financial Education for Migrant Families (intercultural financial education for migrant parents).
At EU level, the innovation has been embedded and further adapted within broader European projects, particularly under Erasmus+ (e.g., Fin4GOOD, Microfuture, MIG.EN.CUBE), to strengthen applied microfinance, inclusive entrepreneurship and capacity building for local operators. The model has also been integrated into CERV projects focused on inclusion and community cohesion, including RISE, a CERV-DAPHNE action addressing gender-based violence in rural and remote areas through coordinated community-based support, mobile helpdesks and personalised empowerment plans piloted across Italy, Greece and Spain, with specific attention to intersectional vulnerabilities (migrant women, women with disabilities, women in socio-economic hardship). 
In parallel, further adaptations have been developed in migration-related settings under AMIF, including M-WISER, where YunusLab’s empowerment approach is embedded into a holistic integration model for third-country national women in rural/peripheral EU areas, combining digital onboarding, financial literacy, entrepreneurship mentoring and competence recognition, supported by multilingual tools and an Empowerment Platform, and anchored locally through helpdesks and Local Integration Pacts with municipalities across a 7-country consortium. 

Key results and benefits

YunusLab is expected to generate structured and measurable outputs on multiple levels, starting from direct benefits for participants and extending to stronger local service capacity. The programme is designed around two integrated training cycles that combine financial education, soft skills development and labour orientation, engaging an ideal total of 16 young beneficiaries (two groups of eight). Each cycle includes up to 60 hours of tailored training, shaped around participants’ needs and profiles. Alongside the learning component, the project provides individual psychological counselling and group support sessions to reinforce motivation, wellbeing and resilience, helping participants build autonomy and confidence as they define and pursue realistic professional pathways. For thoseYunusLab aims to strengthen institutional cooperation between Yunus Foundation and partner municipalities. A key expected outcome is the development of a dedicated local guidance desk embedded in municipal offices, accompanied by an operational handbook and capacity-building for public operators, elements intended to improve sustainability and enable replication within local public services.

Potential for mainstreaming

The YunusLab model is designed to be transferable and scalable across different territorial contexts. It is based on institutional co-programming, modular training contents, personalised accompaniment and capacity building for public operators. The project includes the creation of a local guidance desk and training of municipal staff, enabling long-term sustainability beyond the project duration and facilitating replication by other municipalities, youth services and social innovation ecosystems interested in inclusive employment and youth empowerment. GBV, child protection and intersectional tools are enbedded in all mainstreaming processes in compliance with GDPR and protection of personal sensitive data.