CESC Project

What CESC Project does

CESC Project is a Rome-headquartered non-profit association (associazione) that serves as an accredited titolare ente coordinating Italy's Universal Civil Service (Servizio Civile Universale, SCU) program on behalf of the Dipartimento per le Politiche Giovanili e il Servizio Civile Universale. Founded around 2000, the entity recruits and places young volunteers aged 18-28 with hosting organizations across all 18 Italian regions and at international sites spanning Europe, Africa, South America, and Asia. Volunteers serve for 12 months at approximately 20-25 hours per week for a monthly allowance of approximately 519 euros, and the 2026 SCU call targets 65,964 operator positions (64,479 in Italy, 1,485 abroad). CESC also operates the Corpi Civili di Pace (Civil Peace Corps) program for three-year peace interventions.

The organization's technology stack is built on a Moodle-based e-learning platform called FormaCESC for standardized volunteer training, a dedicated project portal at serviziocivile.cescproject.org for project listings and hosting-entity onboarding, and integration with the national DOL (Domanda On Line) application system managed by the Department. Secondary digital products include the obiezionedicoscienza.org historical archive and the appuntidipace.it online peace magazine. Hosting entities, universities, and partner NGOs are managed through association networks including "Le Vie della Nonviolenza" and coalitions such as Sbilanciamoci! (of which CESC is a steering-committee member), CISP, and Gondwana.

The business model is government-funded program coordination. CESC does not sell commercial services; it receives public resources from the Italian Department for Youth Policies to perform recruitment, accreditation support, hosting-entity management, training delivery, and peace-program operations. Volunteer allowances and program delivery costs are funded through the national SCU budget, while CESC's own operating revenue is derived from its share of coordination and management fees on those programs. The association has 11-50 employees, suggesting a lean coordination overhead relative to the ~66,000 volunteers it channels annually.

Name

CESC Project

Legal name

CESC Project

Website

https://cescproject.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

CESC Project is a Rome-based non-profit association that coordinates Italy's Universal Civil Service program, recruiting and placing 18-28 year-old volunteers with hosting organizations across 18 Italian regions and internationally. It also runs the Corpi Civili di Pace peace-corps program under government accreditation.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Civil Service Coordination

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710), Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

In-Country Placement, Homestay & On-Ground Coordination Services (EDAIAGAM)

akta.pro secondary industry

Virtual Recruitment Events, Fairs & Webinar Platforms (EDAIACAF)

Keywords

• Civil service coordination
• Youth volunteer programs
• Volunteer training platform
• Civil peace corps
• Nonprofit association

Headquarters

HQ city

Rome

HQ country

Italy

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Government Funding for SCU Program Management: CESC Project operates as a coordinating entity funded through public resources to manage Universal Civil Service programs. Funding comes from the Dipartimento per le Politiche Giovanili e il Servizio Civile Universale (Presidency of the Council of Ministers) to coordinate and manage civil service projects, training, and volunteer placement nationwide and internationally.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

CESC Project coordinates Italy's Universal Civil Service (SCU) programs as an accredited non-profit association, recruiting young volunteers aged 18-28 and matching them with hosting organizations across 18 Italian regions and international locations. The organization manages the full lifecycle of service — annual calls for volunteer operators (e.g., 65,964 positions in 2026), online applications via the DOL platform, training through the FormaCESC e-learning platform, tutoring, and project completion across 7 intervention sectors including assistance, civil protection, education, environment, culture, agriculture, and peace promotion.

Product overview

CESC Project is a coordination body for universal civil service programs active across 18 Italian regions, Europe, Africa, South America, and Asia. The organization operates a portfolio consisting of its primary institutional website (cescproject.org), a dedicated civil service application portal (serviziocivile.cescproject.org) for project listings and online applications, and an e-learning platform (FormaCESC) built on Moodle for volunteer training. Secondary offerings include obiezionedicoscienza.org, a historical archive on conscientious objection, and appuntidipace.it, an online peace magazine. The organization also coordinates the Corpi Civili di Pace (Civil Peace Corps) program for young volunteers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• FormaCESC: E-learning platform providing training courses for civil service volunteers
• Corpi Civili di Pace
• Obiezione di Coscienza

Products and services

• Universal Civil Service (SCU) Program Coordination End-to-end coordination of Italy's Universal Civil Service (SCU) program for young volunteers aged 18-28, covering annual calls (e.g., 65,964 volunteer positions in 2026), application intake via the DOL platform, matching with hosting organizations across Italy and abroad, training delivery, tutoring, and project completion across 7 intervention sectors.
• Servizio Civile Universale Portal (serviziocivile.cescproject.org) Dedicated web portal for publishing SCU project listings in Italy and abroad, communicating selection criteria, and enabling young applicants to access the national DOL application platform.
• FormaCESC E-learning Platform Moodle-based e-learning platform delivering training courses for civil service volunteers, including General Training (Formazione Generale), Specific Training (Formazione Specifica), Tutoring (Tutoraggio), and Corpi Civili di Pace (CCP) modules.
• Corpi Civili di Pace (CCP) Program Civil Peace Corps program engaging young Italian volunteers in a three-year experiment of non-armed civilian peace interventions, coordinated by CESC Project with hosting partners.
• obiezionedicoscienza.org Historical Archive Online historical archive documenting the origins of civil service in Italy and the struggles of conscientious objectors against mandatory military service, operated as an editorial project of CESC Project.
• appuntidipace.it Online Magazine Digital editorial project collecting voices, stories, and gestures of nonviolence and justice to share peace narratives, operated as an editorial project of CESC Project.

Quantifiable outcome

• 65,964 volunteer operators selected in 2026 call (64,479 for Italy, 1,485 for abroad)
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Dipartimento per le Politiche Giovanili e il Servizio Civile UniversalecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe national government department under the Presidency of the Council of Ministers is the governing body for Universal Civil Service. CESC Project operates as a titolare ente (holder entity) under this framework, coordinating projects, managing volunteer placements, and implementing government policies for civil service across Italy and abroad.
• Sbilanciamoci!majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCESC Project participates as a member association in the Sbilanciamoci! campaign, a coalition of organizations advocating for alternative economic and social policies. CESC Project has taken an active role by entering the coordination committee (cabina di regia) of participating organizations.
• CISP - Centro Interdisciplinare Scienze per la Pace (University of Pisa)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Interdisciplinary Center for Peace Sciences at the University of Pisa serves as a major hosting entity for civil service projects. CISP is the national coordination center for the Network of Italian Universities for Peace and hosts volunteers in projects related to nonviolence, peace education, and international cooperation.
• GondwanamajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorGondwana is a hosting organization for international civil service projects, coordinating projects in Latin America (Ecuador, Bolivia, Argentina, Colombia), Africa (Tanzania), and other regions. They manage projects in cooperation, rural development, assistance, and education.
• Children of the SeamajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAn international hosting organization coordinating civil service projects in Nepal focused on cooperation and sustainable development.
• Reti associative (Associative Networks)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCESC Project coordinates with various associative networks including 'Le Vie della Nonviolenza' (a network of Roman civil service entities including Acque Correnti, ANCI Lazio, Archivio Disarmo, Caritas di Roma, CSV Lazio, Movimento Nonviolento, UILDM Lazio ONLUS) and the network of universities for peace.
• Un'altra difesa possibile campaignminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCESC Project supports the Popular Legislative Proposal 'Un'altra difesa è possibile' (Another Defense is Possible) which aims to establish a Department for Non-Armed and Nonviolent Civil Defense. CESC promotes this initiative and encourages volunteers and citizens to participate in signature collection.
• Quanto vale il futuro? campaignminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCESC Project supports and promotes the 'Quanto vale il futuro?' (What is the future worth?) campaign, which advocates for increased investment in civil service and more accessible conditions for youth participation.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• CNESC - Conferenza Nazionale Enti per il Servizio Civile: National coordination body of Italian civil service entities; operates in the same titolare ente ecosystem as CESC Project and shares its function of representing and coordinating accredited SCU organizations.
• Caritas Italiana: Major Italian nonprofit and a registered SCU titolare ente that hosts civil service volunteers across assistance and social projects; directly comparable as a hosting and coordinating body for young volunteers.
• ANCI - Associazione Nazionale Comuni Italiani: National association of Italian municipalities and a hosting entity for civil service volunteers across municipal social and educational programs; directly comparable as a coordinator and host for SCU placements.
• CISP - Università di Pisa: Interdisciplinary Center for Peace Sciences at the University of Pisa and a major hosting entity for CESC Project civil service placements in peace education and nonviolence; comparable as an academic-affiliated SCU host.
• CSV Lazio - Centro Servizi per il Volontariato: Volunteer support center providing training, coordination, and operational assistance to NGOs and associations in Lazio; CESC Project already lists CSV Lazio among its associative network partners in 'Le Vie della Nonviolenza'.
• ARCI: Italian cultural and recreational association accredited as a civil service entity, hosting volunteers in social, cultural, and educational projects across its national network; comparable in operating model to CESC's hosting coordination.
• Movimento Nonviolento: Italian nonviolence movement and member of CESC's 'Le Vie della Nonviolenza' associative network; comparable as a thematic peer in peace education and civil service values.

Emerging players

• Voluntary Service Overseas (VSO): International development NGO placing skilled volunteers in Africa and Asia for education, health, and livelihoods projects; comparable in international volunteering and youth placement model even though not a government program.

Broad incumbents

• Peace Corps (United States): US government international volunteer service program sending Americans abroad for community development work; comparable in operational model (government-funded structured international volunteering) though at far larger scale.
• European Solidarity Corps: EU-wide program funding young people's voluntary projects and humanitarian aid placements across member states; broad incumbent comparable to CESC's universal civil service coordination at a supranational scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xfacebook.com/cescproject
• Facebookfacebook.com/cescproject
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cesc-project

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about CESC Project