Co-creating an inclusive and youth-responsive society in Africa and Europe.
Co-creating an inclusive and youth-responsive society in Africa and Europe.
Project
AU-EU Youth Voices Lab – Power of the Collective is a four-year EuropeAid project that fosters a more youth-responsive and inclusive society in Africa and Europe. It is implemented by an international consortium with youth-led and youth-informed work expertise, including Oxfam, Restless Development, Search for Common Ground, Youthmakers Hub, and ComDev Africa.
The project envisions a society where youth engagement, empowerment, and connection drive policy-making, partnerships, and decision-making. Operations are continent-wide, and the strategies involve youth and decision-makers from all 54 African countries, targeting 14 Intervention Countries in Africa and 1 in Europe for in-person activities.
Key Opportunities
The project develops the Youth Voices Lab App, which serves as a virtual mirror of the collective and builds on input from 10,000 young people, tailored to their needs and priorities.
The Youth Voices Third-Party-Funding Mechanism (YV-TPFM) supports youth-led advocacy initiatives by providing microgrants ranging from €1,000 to €10,000 per collective to youth-led groups from intervention countries and the youth diaspora to support their actions. It aims at strengthening local and continental advocacy through research, training, and accountability mechanisms.
Other key actions include training 24,000 young people on advocacy-related skills, hosting Youth Power Hackathons, and supporting youth representatives in joining intergenerational and cross-continental decision-making spaces.
Vision
A society where policies, partnerships, and decision-making processes are shaped by enhanced youth engagement, empowerment, and connection, alongside improved intergenerational partnerships at local, national, continental, and cross-continental levels.
General Objective
To co-create a more inclusive and youth-responsive society in Africa and Europe.
Specific Objectives
The Youth Journey
Empowering young people – ages 15 to 35, including those in hard-to-reach areas and not in education, employment, or training – and youth-led groups to effectively advocate for their concerns and priorities within the AU-EU partnership in Africa.
The Institutional Journey
Engaging decision-makers, including institutions, governments, and corporations, to develop youth-centered and youth-responsive policies.
Project Ambitions in Numbers
Engage
young people in information access, action planning, and accountability through youth-led initiatives.
Empower
young people to participate in civil society with collective self-care.
Connect
young people with intergenerational dialogues and cross-continental partnerships.
Assist
policymakers and decision-makers in collaborating on youth-responsive policymaking and accountability.
Support
youth-responsive policies development or improvement.
Key Notions
AU-EU Youth Voices Lab – Power of the Collective facilitates meaningful change by integrating key notions across all its actions:
Human rights
Youth as rights-holders guiding youth policy creation.
Gender justice
Transforming gender norms and harmful practices that limit youth participation.
Diversity & inclusion
Fighting oppression and ensuring the participation of under-represented youth.
Care, well-being & safeguarding
Ongoing risk analysis, safeguarding policies, and youth-led well-being activities.
Power-shifting
Creating inclusive environments for youth power to thrive.
Events
Explore the events of AU-EU Youth Voices Lab – Power of the Collective. Unlock digital and on-site activities to engage, empower, and connect.
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Consortium
