AU-EU Youth Lab

What AU-EU Youth Lab does

The AU-EU Youth Lab is a non-profit, EU-funded youth empowerment programme operating across Africa and Europe on a 2024-2028 horizon. It provides grants, training, and policy-engagement opportunities to youth-led organisations and young people aged 15-35, with the explicit aim of strengthening youth participation in AU-EU decision-making. The programme is funded by the European Union under the Youth Action Plan (YAP) and the Global Gateway strategy, and is implemented by a consortium of six civil society organisations — Oxfam (overall coordination), European Youth Forum (EU civil society), Restless Development Uganda (Representation Grants), plus Search for Common Ground, Youthmakers Hub, and ComDev Africa (Youth Voices Lab). The African Union Commission's Women, Gender, and Youth Directorate provides institutional partnership on the African side. Governance is structurally youth-led: a 12-member Youth Advisory Board (10 from AU focus countries, 2 from EU) holds decision-making power over grant selection under a powershifting model.

The platform-plus-modules product architecture comprises two components: (1) the Youth Action Lab, which disburses four tiers of grants — Innovation (€30-40k), Entrepreneurship (€30k, social-enterprise focus), Representation (€10k, marginalised African youth), and Cooperation (€50k, multi-country consortiums) — administered via the ON Grip online application platform across three planned Calls for Proposals; and (2) the Youth Voices Lab ("Power of the Collective"), a four-year initiative focused on policy advocacy, intergenerational dialogues, and youth-responsive policymaking, which operates a €5-10k Third-Party-Funding microgrant mechanism and is building a multi-language mobile application targeting 10,000 users. Underlying technology is non-proprietary: there is no AI/ML capability, no API, and no SDK — the stack is essentially a website, an application portal, a community platform (Power2Voices), and forthcoming mobile app. The programme covers all 54 AU member states with 14 African priority intervention countries plus Belgium, and applies across all 27 EU member states for Cooperation Grants.

The business model is non-commercial grantmaking rather than revenue generation. Funding flows from the EU through consortium partners to youth-led grantees as non-repayable grants awarded through competitive Calls for Proposals, disbursed in EUR in two instalments (60% on signing, 40% on mid-term progress). The first Call attracted 8,700+ registrations and 1,810 applications across the four grant types; the Youth Voices Lab Third-Party-Funding Mechanism received 740 applications across 15 intervention countries, with Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, and Cameroon submitting the highest volumes. Training targets 24,000 young people on advocacy, leadership, and community engagement. Recipients are fragmented across small grants (€10-50k each) — Digital Women Uganda, UJUZI CO-CREATION HUB, Youth Invest, MNYPA, She Huru, and others — and operate in verticals ranging from GBV survivor support and refugee livelihoods to climate negotiation, last-mile health tech, and LGBTQ-GNC inclusion. Go-to-market is digital-first (six social channels, newsletter, partner media, webinars reaching 100-350 participants per session) complemented by high-visibility event presence (YouthConnekt Africa Summit, Pan-African Youth Forum, Global Gateway High-Level Youth Event, Youth Sounding Board Expo).

Name

AU-EU Youth Lab

Legal name

AU-EU Youth Lab

Website

https://aueuyouth.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2024

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

AU-EU Youth Lab is a non-profit programme providing grants, training, and policy-engagement opportunities to youth-led organisations across Africa and Europe, funded by the EU Youth Action Plan through 2028 and implemented by a six-organisation civil society consortium under a youth-led governance model.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Youth Development & Grants

NAICS

Child and Youth Services (62411), Child and Youth Services (624110), Educational Support Services (611710), Educational Services (611)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Educational Services (8200), International Affairs (9721)

akta.pro primary industry

Youth Mentoring & Positive Youth Development Nonprofits (BPAGADAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

International Development & Donor-Funded Education Programs (EDADALAB), International Student Funding & Mobility Grants Administration (EDADAHAL), Volunteer Program Funding, Scholarships & Fundraising Support (EDAIAGAO)

Keywords

• Youth empowerment grants
• Capacity building programmes
• Policy advocacy training
• Cross-continental collaboration
• Nonprofit funding initiative

Headquarters

HQ city

Pretoria

HQ country

South Africa

HQ region

Africa

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. EU Youth Action Plan Funding: The AU-EU Youth Lab is funded by the European Union as part of the EU's Youth Action Plan (YAP). Funding flows through consortium partners (Oxfam, European Youth Forum, Restless Development) to youth-led organisations via four grant types: Innovation Grants (€30,000–€40,000), Entrepreneurship Grants (€30,000), Representation Grants (€10,000), and Cooperation Grants (€50,000 for consortiums). The Youth Voices Lab is similarly EU co-funded as a four-year initiative.

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The AU-EU Youth Lab is a youth empowerment and grants programme funded by the European Union under the EU Youth Action Plan, delivering non-repayable grants (€10,000–€50,000), training, and capacity building to youth-led organisations across Africa and Europe. It operates two umbrella components — the Youth Voices Lab (policy advocacy and youth-responsive decision-making) and the Youth Action Lab (powershifting grants for innovative initiatives, social enterprises, marginalised youth representation, and cross-continental cooperation). All grants are awarded through competitive Calls for Proposals reviewed by a 12-member Youth Advisory Board (10 African + 2 EU representatives) that holds genuine decision-making power in selection.

Product overview

AU-EU Youth Lab is a youth empowerment programme operating as a platform-plus-modules architecture with two core components: the Youth Voices Lab (focused on policy engagement and youth participation in AU-EU decision-making) and the Youth Action Lab (providing financial grants and capacity building). The Youth Action Lab offers four distinct grant types - Innovation Grants, Entrepreneurship Grants, Representation Grants, and Cooperation Grants - each with different focus areas and eligibility criteria. The Youth Voices Lab complements this with a Third-Party-Funding Mechanism and an upcoming mobile app. Training and capacity building services support all programme components, while Youth Advisory Boards ensure youth-led governance across both Labs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Youth Voices Lab - Power of the Collective: A four-year initiative (2024-2028) co-funded by the European Union, implemented by Oxfam, Restless Development, Search for Common Ground, Youthmakers Hub, and ComDev Africa. Focuses on fostering inclusive and youth-responsive society across Africa and Europe through advocacy, training, and intergenerational dialogues.
• Youth Action Lab

Products and services

• Youth Voices Lab The Youth Voices Lab is a four-year initiative (2024–2028) ensuring that policy-making and decision-making processes around the Africa-EU Partnership are more youth-responsive and inclusive, with stronger youth participation and representation. It is co-funded by the European Union and implemented by Oxfam, Restless Development, Search for Common Ground, Youthmakers Hub, and ComDev Africa.
• Youth Action Lab The Youth Action Lab is the core component that provides opportunities for youth initiatives in Africa and Europe to implement their ideas and solutions linked to global challenges through powershifting grants, awarded under the EU's Youth Action Plan. Implemented by Oxfam, European Youth Forum, and Restless Development Uganda.
• Innovation Grants Grants of €30,000–€40,000 supporting youth organisations to innovate in response to global challenges by designing, testing, scaling, or improving activities for young people in their own context. Applications accepted in English, French, or Portuguese; 12-month funding period.
• Entrepreneurship Grants Fixed €30,000 grants supporting youth-led social enterprises that combine social or environmental missions with income-generating activities, focusing on skills development, responsible growth, and enabling environment for young entrepreneurs. 12-month funding period (May 2026 to April 2027 for second Call).
• Representation Grants Grants of up to €10,000 supporting initiatives led by underrepresented and marginalised African youth to deliver change in their communities through advocacy, movement building, and participation in policy dialogues. 12-month funding period.
• Cooperation Grants Fixed €50,000 grants awarded to consortiums of 2–4 youth-led organisations (at least one African and one European) for cross-continental policy-making, advocacy, and collaboration between Africa and Europe. The coordinating organisation handles administrative tasks and typically receives a larger share.
• Youth Voices Third-Party-Funding Mechanism Microgrants of €5,000–€10,000 supporting youth-led advocacy initiatives through research, training, and accountability mechanisms across 15 intervention countries and diaspora in Africa and Europe. 15 organisations selected in first round; 12-month funding period per project.
• AU-EU Youth Voices Lab App Upcoming mobile application designed to engage 10,000 young people with free access to information, training courses, collaborative workshops, networking opportunities, and resources optimised for low data usage in multiple languages.
• Training and Capacity Building Provides training and coaching to young people and youth organisations, youth advisory structures, and youth groups on advocacy, policy-making, decision-making processes, and monitoring of impact mechanisms led by young people. Plans to train 24,000 young people on advocacy, leadership development, and community engagement.

Quantifiable outcome

• 24,000 young people to be trained on advocacy, leadership, and community engagement skills
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• OxfamcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 14 October 2024Oxfam is a key implementing consortium partner of the AU-EU Youth Lab, responsible for overall programme coordination and grant management. Oxfam contributed to the launch of the programme in Addis Ababa in October 2024 and participates in Youth Advisory Board oversight and grant selection processes.
• European Youth ForumcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 14 October 2024The European Youth Forum is a key implementing consortium partner representing European youth civil society. It contributes to governance oversight, Youth Advisory Board composition, and programme implementation for both the Youth Action Lab and Youth Voices Lab.
• Restless Development UgandacoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 14 October 2024Restless Development Uganda is a key implementing consortium partner. It specifically manages the Representation Grants under the Youth Action Lab and contributes to Youth Advisory Board oversight. The organisation is physically present in Uganda and other African countries for on-ground implementation.
• African Union Commission (AUC)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 14 October 2024The African Union Commission, specifically through the Women, Gender, and Youth Directorate (WGYD), is the African institutional partner for the AU-EU Youth Lab. Ms. Prudence Ngwenya, AUC Director of Women, Gender, and Youth, participated in the programme launch. The AUC provides institutional legitimacy, youth policy frameworks, and continental coordination.
• Search for Common GroundcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 January 2024Search for Common Ground is one of five consortium organisations implementing the AU-EU Youth Voices Lab – Power of the Collective initiative. The organisation brings expertise in peacebuilding, youth-led approaches, and cross-continental collaboration to the programme.
• Youthmakers HubcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 January 2024Youthmakers Hub is one of five consortium organisations implementing the AU-EU Youth Voices Lab – Power of the Collective initiative. It contributes expertise in youth-led innovation, digital engagement, and capacity building for African and European youth organisations.
• ComDev AfricacoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting Partner · 1 January 2024ComDev Africa is one of five consortium organisations implementing the AU-EU Youth Voices Lab – Power of the Collective initiative. It contributes communication for development expertise and regional networks across Africa to support youth engagement and advocacy.

Scale indicators14 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI): US-government-funded initiative investing in young African leaders through training, networking, and grants; directly comparable to AU-EU Youth Lab's policy and capacity-building components from a non-EU donor angle.
• Restless Development: A youth-led development agency operating in Africa and Asia; not only a consortium partner of AU-EU Youth Lab but also a direct comparable as another donor-funded youth empowerment and grantmaking platform targeting the same young-person demographic.
• Global Youth Mobilization: A global youth-led initiative addressing the impact of COVID-19 on young people through grantmaking and capacity building; comparable to AU-EU Youth Lab as a donor-funded, youth-led grantmaking platform with structured microgrant and project-grant tiers.
• European Youth Forum: The umbrella platform of European youth organisations and a consortium partner of AU-EU Youth Lab; directly comparable as an EU-linked youth policy and capacity-building intermediary for youth-led CSOs.
• Search for Common Ground: An international conflict-transformation NGO and a consortium partner of AU-EU Youth Lab; comparable as a peer implementer running youth-led, donor-funded programmes across Africa with overlapping themes of peacebuilding and participatory governance.
• Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF Entrepreneurship Programme): An African entrepreneurship grantmaking and training programme whose Entrepreneurship Grants overlap directly with AU-EU Youth Lab's €30,000 Entrepreneurship Grants; both target young African founders with seed funding and capacity building.
• Erasmus+ Youth: EU-funded youth mobility, capacity-building, and grant programme that, like AU-EU Youth Lab, channels EU monies to youth-led organisations via competitive calls and consortium grants, though with a European geographic focus.

Broad incumbents

• Mastercard Foundation Young Africa Works: A large-scale foundation initiative funding youth employment and entrepreneurship across Africa; comparable to AU-EU Youth Lab's Entrepreneurship Grants and capacity-building components, with a much larger pool of capital and a similarly consortium-based delivery model.
• UNDP Youth4South: UNDP's youth empowerment and South-South cooperation programme; a comparable multilateral donor-funded platform focusing on youth-led development and policy engagement, with a similar funding-partner implementation model.
• UNICEF Generation Unlimited: A large UN-led global initiative combining skills, engagement, and financing for youth aged 10–24; comparable to AU-EU Youth Lab at the policy-and-grantmaking layer but operating at much broader geographic and thematic scale.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/AUEUYouthLab
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCILfeC0uNyAAFlmNZFy8lmg
• Facebookfacebook.com/profile.php
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/aueu-youth-lab/about/?viewAsMember=true
• Instagraminstagram.com/aueuyouthlab

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about AU-EU Youth Lab