Western Balkans Alumni Association

What Western Balkans Alumni Association does

Western Balkans Alumni Association (WBAA) is a Brussels-headquartered, non-profit alumni network founded in 2016, operating as part of the European Commission's Erasmus+ International Student and Alumni Networks framework. It connects students and alumni from six Western Balkans countries — Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia — providing cross-border networking, capacity building, skills development events, and policy dialogue opportunities. The organisation hosts country-level programming across the region, including a Project Accelerator initiative, a Future Skills event, and higher education policy discussions such as the European Degree dialogue at Bitola University. Its underlying technology is the European Commission's Erasmus Networks Platform, which it uses to manage its community of members; there is no proprietary technology stack disclosed in the source material.

The business model is non-commercial: membership is free and the organisation does not generate revenue from its members. Its operations are funded through the European Commission's Erasmus+ programme and supported by partnerships with the Erasmus+ Support Service Team, the European Network of Foundations for Innovative Education (ENFP), and universities across the Western Balkans. The go-to-market approach is event-led and institutionally anchored, relying on the credibility of the Erasmus+ brand and on partnerships with regional universities and EU bodies rather than on direct sales or marketing. With 14 employees, WBAA is a small organisation by headcount, and the source data does not disclose membership totals, operating budget, or funding amounts.

From a strategic and investor lens, WBAA functions as a publicly mandated convening platform rather than a commercial enterprise, with its value derived from institutional positioning and network density rather than financial returns. Its dependence on European Commission funding and its regulatory embedding in the Erasmus+ framework simultaneously constitute its primary asset and its principal concentration risk.

Name

Western Balkans Alumni Association

Legal name

Western Balkans Alumni Association

Website

https://western-balkans-alumni.eu

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Western Balkans Alumni Association is a Brussels-based non-profit network founded in 2016 that connects Erasmus+ alumni across six Western Balkans countries under the European Commission umbrella, providing cross-border networking, capacity building, and project development programmes.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Alumni Network Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Mentoring, Coaching, Alumni Networking & Peer Support Platforms (EDAFAMAN)

akta.pro secondary industry

Alumni Events, Reunions & Regional Chapters (EDALAOAG)

Keywords

• Alumni network
• Professional development
• Regional cooperation
• Capacity building
• Community engagement

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. No Revenue Generation: WBAA is a non-profit alumni network operating under the Erasmus+ programme and European Commission umbrella. As a regional network, it does not generate commercial revenue but rather facilitates networking, professional development, and regional cooperation among Erasmus+ alumni in the Western Balkans.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

WBAA operates a regional alumni network connecting Erasmus+ alumni from six Western Balkans countries through the European Commission's Erasmus Networks Platform. It delivers capacity-building workshops, mentorship, and the Regional Project Accelerator programme that equips alumni with skills to develop project proposals under the Erasmus+ Support Programme. The association also convenes policy dialogues and future skills events to support personal and professional growth among members.

Product overview

The Western Balkans Alumni Association (WBAA) operates as a unified regional alumni network platform. The core offering consists of the WBAA Network connecting Erasmus+ alumni across six Western Balkans countries, supported by a dedicated community platform (community.western-balkans-alumni.eu) for member engagement. Additional offerings include the Regional Project Accelerator programme for capacity building, governance resources, and regional activities such as policy dialogues and skills development events. The portfolio functions as a network-within-a-platform model where the primary community platform serves as the hub, with supplementary programmes and governance structures supporting member collaboration and professional development.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Western Balkans Alumni Association (WBAA) Network A regional network connecting alumni from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo*, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia who studied abroad through Erasmus+ or other mobility programmes, providing community building, personal and professional growth support.
• WBAA Community Platform
• WBAA Regional Project Accelerator A capacity-building programme that equips Erasmus+ alumni with knowledge, practical skills and mentorship to develop high-quality project proposals under the Erasmus+ Support Programme.
• WBAA Governance Structure

Quantifiable outcome

• The Regional WBAA Project Accelerator successfully equipped participants with knowledge, practical skills, and mentorship to develop high-quality project proposals under the Erasmus+ Support Programme
• +1 more outcomes

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core, minor and moderate.

• European CommissioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWBAA operates as a regional network under the Erasmus+ International Student and Alumni Networks, facilitated by the European Commission through the Erasmus Networks Platform. The EC provides institutional support, governance frameworks, and programme alignment for WBAA activities.
• Erasmus+ Support Service TeamcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerThe Erasmus+ Support Service Team provides editorial and coordination support for WBAA communications, news publishing, and event coverage on the Erasmus Networks Platform.
• Erasmus+ National Focal Points (ENFP)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWBAA collaborates with ENFP networks within the broader Erasmus ecosystem, sharing resources and participating in joint initiatives related to international education cooperation.
• Universities in Western BalkansmoderateStrategic or Co-development PartnerWBAA partners with universities across the Western Balkans region for events, policy dialogues, and project accelerator programmes, including Bitola University in North Macedonia and institutions in Serbia.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• SPHERE Community: Another regional alumni/community network operating on the Erasmus Networks Platform. Structurally identical to WBAA in hosting model, member mix, and EC alignment.
• Erasmus Student Network (ESN): Largest student and alumni network under the Erasmus+ umbrella, active across Europe including the Western Balkans. Comparable in mission (mobility alumni community-building) but operates independently rather than under direct EC hosting.
• Erasmus+ National Focal Points (ENFP): National-level networks under the Erasmus+ ecosystem that WBAA explicitly collaborates with. They share platform, governance style, and stakeholder overlap with WBAA, differing mainly in geographic granularity.
• Erasmus+ Alumni Network: The overarching Erasmus+ International Student and Alumni Network hosted on the same Erasmus Networks Platform. WBAA is a regional sub-network of this structure, making it the most direct organisational peer.
• Study in Europe: EC-hosted community for promoting European higher education to international audiences. Comparable as an Erasmus Networks Platform network focused on international education mobility and stakeholder engagement.
• Erasmus Mundus Association: Network for Erasmus Mundus joint master's and doctorate alumni, also hosted on the Erasmus Networks Platform. Comparable in serving internationally-mobile alumni under EC governance with similar community-building activities.
• European Digital Education Hub: Sister network on the Erasmus Networks Platform focused on digital education stakeholders. Compares to WBAA in EC-hosted community model and education-sector convening, though with a thematic rather than regional scope.

Emerging players

• AIESEC: Global youth-led network running international exchange and leadership programmes with active Western Balkans chapters. Comparable in alumni/participant community-building, professional development focus, and regional convening model.

Broad incumbents

• Fulbright Alumni Association: Global alumni network for Fulbright programme participants, organised regionally (including in Europe). Comparable in mission to maintain and leverage an international-exchange alumni community for professional and policy impact.
• DAAD Alumni Networks: German Academic Exchange Service alumni networks connecting former scholarship holders globally, including the Western Balkans. Comparable as a regional/national alumni networking structure tied to a major international education programme.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCTs4hem9qTmc8pV-VFBgyYg
• Facebookfacebook.com/WesternBalkansAlumniAssociation
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/westernbalkansalumniassociation
• Instagraminstagram.com/wbaassociation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Western Balkans Alumni Association