The AU-EU Youth Action Lab is offering a fresh round of support for social enterprises and youth-led ventures across Africa. Through its 2026 Entrepreneurship Grant, the initiative aims to empower young change-makers, enabling them to grow sustainable enterprises that combine social or environmental impact with income-generating activity.
This grant offers promising startup teams a chance to secure significant financial backing and join a wider network of youth-driven organisations across Africa and Europe.
Grants & Other Benefits
- The grant provides substantial funding — between €30,000 and €50,000 — to support growth and sustainability of eligible youth-led enterprises.
- Funding comes with capacity-building support. Grantees receive guidance, mentorship and access to tools to help scale their operations responsibly while maintaining social or environmental mission.
- Being part of Youth Action Lab gives access to a broader community — connecting your venture to other young innovators, potential partners, and stakeholders across Africa and Europe.
- The grant offers a structured project duration of 12 months, giving you enough runway to build, test or expand your enterprise sustainably.
Program Scope
The Entrepreneurship Grant under Youth Action Lab supports youth-led social enterprises that combine mission-driven impact with revenue generation.
Eligible enterprises should focus on growth models that improve livelihoods, generate employment, or provide services — all while contributing positively to social or environmental challenges.
In this 2025-2026 call, the focus is on the responsible growth of youth-led social enterprises, combining social/environmental mission with income-generating activities.
Eligibility Criteria
To qualify for the grant:
- Your enterprise or organisation must be youth-led (decision-making leadership and core staff aged between 18 and 35).
- You must be a legally registered entity (social enterprise, NGO/CSO, cooperative or similar), with a bank account, governance structure and formal registration.
- Your project must take place in one of the eligible countries: those listed by Youth Action Lab (for example Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda, etc.).
- You should already run some income-generating activity — the grant is not just for ideas, but for enterprises combining social/environmental goals with financial sustainability.
Application Process
- Applications are submitted online through the official Youth Action Lab portal. Ensure you register on their platform beforehand.
- You will need to complete the proposal form, present your enterprise profile, social-impact focus, revenue model, and a plan of how grant funds will be used.
- Deadline for submission for this call: 7 January 2026 (by 14:00 CAT / 15:00 EAT).
- Selected grantees will receive funding and begin a 12-month support programme under Youth Action Lab.
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Incredible opportunity