Applications are Open for AU–EU Youth Action Lab Entrepreneurship Grant

Applications are now open for the AU–EU Youth Action Lab Entrepreneurship Grant, a funding opportunity designed to support youth-led organisations working to strengthen economic opportunities for young people across Africa and Europe. The grant aims to empower young innovators and social entrepreneurs who are building responsible, sustainable, and income-generating solutions that address youth unemployment and economic exclusion.

About the Grant

The Entrepreneurship Grant provides up to 30,000 euros in funding to eligible youth organisations and consortiums of youth organisations. The focus of this funding round is on supporting the responsible growth of youth-led social enterprises that combine social or environmental missions with sustainable income-generating activities. These grants are part of a broader effort to help young people take control of their economic futures while contributing positively to their communities and the environment.

Why This Matters

Young people across Africa and Europe continue to face barriers to meaningful economic participation, including limited access to relevant skills, financing, and enabling business environments. This grant supports youth-led solutions that not only create jobs and livelihoods but also promote responsible business growth that respects social and environmental boundaries. By investing in youth-led social enterprises, the AU–EU Youth Action Lab is strengthening local economies, fostering innovation, and supporting long-term, community-driven development.

What the Grant Offers

• Selected organisations will receive financial support of up to 30,000 euros to implement their proposed social enterprise projects.
• Beyond funding, grantees will benefit from mentorship and tailored capacity development support to strengthen organisational sustainability and impact.
• Successful applicants will also join a wider AU–EU Youth Action Lab platform, gaining visibility and opportunities to share their solutions with peers, policymakers, and stakeholders across Africa and Europe.

Who Can Apply

• The grant is open to youth-led organisations that meet specific eligibility requirements.
• Eligible applicants must be non-profit organisations operating as Trusts, Community-Based Organisations, NGOs, CSOs, Cooperatives, or similar entities with a clear social or environmental mission. The income-generating activity of the organisation must exist to sustain and advance this mission, not as a side business.
• Organizations must be youth-led, meaning young people aged 18 to 35 hold full governance and decision-making power and are actively involved in designing and implementing programmes.
• All staff working on the proposed project must also fall within this age range.
• Applicants must be formally registered, have an organisational bank account, a clear governance structure, and at least 12 months of operational experience.
• Eligible organisations must demonstrate evidence of community programmes and revenue-generating activities, show measurable social or environmental impact, and reinvest profits into the mission or scaling of the enterprise. Private shareholder profit payments are not permitted.

Geographical Eligibility

Applicants must be located and registered in one of the 12 AU–EU Youth Action Lab focus countries: Ethiopia, Kenya, Mozambique, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia (Somaliland region), Tanzania, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Proposed activities must take place in one or more of these countries.

Eligible Activities

• Proposals can include a mix of activities aimed at strengthening youth economic participation.
• These may involve developing or testing new skills development curricula, scaling existing skills training programmes to reach underserved or remote youth, or strengthening collaboration between youth-led organisations, local businesses, skills providers, and government actors. Innovative and integrated approaches are strongly encouraged.

How to Apply

Interested organisations should submit their proposals through the official AU–EU Youth Action Lab platform. Applicants are encouraged to clearly outline how their project supports the responsible growth of youth-led social enterprises, strengthens economic opportunities for young people, and delivers measurable social or environmental impact.

Apply Here