Organizer: AU-EU Youth Action Lab
Application Deadline: 12 February 2026 – 13.00 CET.
Location: Africa/Europe
Opportunity Type: Grants/Call For Proposals
Overview
The Cooperation Grants empower youth organisations to engage in policy-making and cross-continental collaboration between Africa and Europe. Grants of 50,000 EURO are available for consortiums of youth-led organisations, with at least one African organisation and one European organisation.
What do we mean with cooperation?
Young people around the world often face similar challenges. Some, like climate change and inequality, require global solutions; others, such as lack of education or economic opportunities, demand more localised solutions. Cooperation grants aim to help African and European youth organisations share resources, knowledge and strategies, and to leverage the added value of collaboration, creating a stronger response across continents.
Youth-led organisations from the AU and EU must apply together, with at least two organisations as part of the consortium. Applications must be submitted jointly; independent submissions from a single organisation will not be accepted.
Each consortium must dedicate their proposal to tackling one solution, with work taking place in both continents. We believe that by cooperation, our actions become stronger!
What can you expect when you receive a grant?
Cooperation Grants aim to:
- Enable young people to become effective advocates for their rights and their priorities, by giving them the financial resources required to dedicate efforts to policy-work on local, national and international stages.
- Provide training and resources to help youth understand how to engage with government institutions and influence policy as active citizens.
- Facilitate connections between youth organisations across Africa and Europe to promote intercultural dialogue and collaborative initiatives.
Eligibility/Requirements
- Your organisation must be a non-profit, operating as a Trust, Community Based Organisation (CBO) or as a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO)/Civil Society Organisation (CSO) with a clear social mission.
- Apply as a consortium of two to four organisations: including one established in one of the 12 eligible African countries (Ethiopia, Kenya, Mozambique, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia (Somaliland region), Tanzania, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe) and one established in the European Union. Independent applications are not allowed.
- Your organisation must be youth-led: young people (aged 18-35) represent the organisation’s governance and have primary decision-making power over the organisation’s direction and programmes (100% is aged 18-35) and are directly involved in designing and carrying out activities (>80% is aged 18-35).
- Your project must be youth-led: all staff (100%) working on implementing the project should be young people (aged 18-35).
- Your organisation is formal: you are legally registered in your country, have an organisation bank account and a clear governance structure.
- The coordinator organisation must have experience working on collaborative projects with at least one partner organisation.
Activities You can propose
The Cooperation Grants support the joint advocacy work of youth organisations. By advocacy, we mean speaking up for a cause, holding power to account, and/or creating change. Your initiative can take many forms and include a wide range of activities.
There is no fixed formula: you are free to design activities in the way that best fits your project, as long as you show clearly how they contribute to meaningful policy and advocacy impact.
How to apply
- Carefully read the funding manual.
- Budget Template
- Make sure you meet the eligibility criteria.
- Find at least one partner organisation from the other continent.
- Sample application
- Submit your application before 12 February 2026 – 13.00 CET.
Please ensure you register to the correct grant type and language. You will not be able to switch after you register here.
For questions on this grant, please refer to the FAQ. If your query is not found, please email: cooperation@aueuyouth.com
For more information, please visit the AU-EU official webpage at: https://aueuyouth.com/
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