Capacity building in VET in Sub-Saharan Africa

The EU grant opportunity pertains to the Erasmus+ Capacity Building in Vocational Education and Training (VET) in Sub-Saharan Africa program. This initiative aims to enhance the capacity and effectiveness of VET systems in Sub-Saharan African countries through international partnerships, particularly with European institutions. Eligible applicants include a variety of organizations such as VET providers, companies, industry associations, national qualification authorities, and international organizations, with a requirement that the main coordinator must be a VET provider. The program is structured as a grant, specifically an Erasmus Lump Sum Grant, providing fixed funding for project implementation. A consortium of multiple organizations is required for applications, which must include at least two EU Member States or countries associated with the Erasmus+ Programme and at least one country from Sub-Saharan Africa. The application is open for a single-stage submission, with proposals due by March 26, 2026. The program emphasizes vocational education, targeting improvements in management, governance, inclusion, quality assurance, and innovation. The total funding allocated for Sub-Saharan Africa in this round is €7.5 million for projects focusing on various thematic areas relevant to VET, aiming to align training with labor market needs. While specific success rates and co-funding requirements are not detailed, competitive funding typically has historical success rates between 10 to 39%. Projects can operate at various stages, including curriculum development, training, and innovation. The key objectives reflect the EU's commitment to enhancing educational cooperation and responding to socio-economic challenges in the targeted regions, ensuring that VET systems become more responsive to industry demands while building institutional capacity.

The EU Funding & Tenders Portal presents a call for proposals for Capacity Building in the Field of Vocational Education and Training (VET) under the Erasmus+ Programme. The call identifier is ERASMUS-EDU-2026-CB-VET. This action aims to support the relevance, accessibility, and responsiveness of VET institutions and systems in third countries not associated to the Programme as a driver of sustainable socio-economic development. It will be implemented through international cooperation projects based on multilateral partnerships between organisations active in the field of VET in EU Member States and third countries associated to the Programme, and third countries not associated to the Programme.

The objectives of the action are to build capacity of VET providers to strengthen cooperation between private and public stakeholders, improve the quality and responsiveness of VET to socio-economic opportunities, and align VET provision to local, regional and national development strategies.

The call is implemented through ERASMUS Lump Sum Grants. The type of Model Grant Agreement is ERASMUS Lump Sum Grant [ERASMUS-AG-LS]. The deadline model is single-stage.

The planned opening date is 04 December 2025, and the deadline for submitting applications is 26 March 2026, 17:00:00 Brussels time. The evaluation period is from April to September 2026. Information to applicants will be available in September 2026, and the signature of the grant agreement is expected in December 2026.

The admissibility conditions include compliance with the ERASMUS+ Programme guide 2026. The page limit for Part B, the Technical Description of the Application Form, is 40 pages. Eligible countries are described in the ERASMUS+ Programme guide 2026. Other eligible conditions are also described in the ERASMUS+ Programme guide 2026. An organisation cannot be the coordinator of more than two proposals submitted under this action. Financial and operational capacity and exclusion criteria are described in the ERASMUS+ Programme guide 2026. Submission and evaluation processes are described in the ERASMUS+ Programme guide 2026. Evaluation criteria, scoring, threshold, and process are described in the ERASMUS+ Programme guide 2026. The indicative timeline for evaluation and grant agreement is described in the ERASMUS+ Programme guide 2026.

The call document and annexes include application form templates (Standard application form (ERASMUS BB and LSII), Detailed budget table (ERASMUS LSII)), guidance (ERASMUS Programme Guide, Model Grant Agreements (MGA), Lump Sum MGA), and additional documents (ERASMUS+ Work Programme, ERASMUS Regulation 2021/817, EU Financial Regulation 2024/2509, Rules for Legal Entity Validation, LEAR Appointment and Financial Capacity Assessment, EU Grants AGA — Annotated Model Grant Agreement, Funding & Tenders Portal Online Manual, Funding & Tenders Portal Terms and Conditions, Funding & Tenders Portal Privacy Statement, How to manage your lump sum grants).

The budget overview for 2026 includes the following topics and budgets:

ERASMUS-EDU-2026-CB-VET-CA - ERASMUS-LS ERASMUS Lump Sum Grants:€300 000

ERASMUS-EDU-2026-CB-VET-LA - ERASMUS-LS ERASMUS Lump Sum Grants:€2 000 000

ERASMUS-EDU-2026-CB-VET-NE - ERASMUS-LS ERASMUS Lump Sum Grants:€3 800 000

ERASMUS-EDU-2026-CB-VET-SMC - ERASMUS-LS ERASMUS Lump Sum Grants:€6 358 000

ERASMUS-EDU - ERASMUS-LS ERASMUS Lump Sum Grants:€7 500 000

ERASMUS-EDU-2026-CB-VET-WB - ERASMUS-LS ERASMUS Lump Sum Grants:€8 482 000

There are partner search announcements available. LEARs, Account Administrators, or self-registrants can publish partner requests for open and forthcoming topics. The submission system is planned to be opened on the date stated on the topic header.

For help related to this call, contact EACEA-EPLUS-CBVET@ec.europa.eu. The deadline for addressing queries is 13 March 2026 (eob). Additional support resources include the Funding & Tenders Portal FAQ, IT Helpdesk, and Online Manual.

In summary, this Erasmus+ call focuses on capacity building projects in vocational education and training, aiming to enhance the quality and relevance of VET systems in third countries not associated with the program. It encourages international partnerships to improve VET provider capabilities, strengthen ties with the labor market, and align VET with socio-economic development strategies. The funding is provided as lump sum grants, and the application process involves specific eligibility criteria, evaluation procedures, and timelines outlined in the Erasmus+ Programme Guide 2026. Interested organizations should carefully review the call documents and annexes, and utilize the available support resources for a successful application.

Eligible Applicant Types:The eligible applicant types are organizations active in the field of Vocational Education and Training (VET) in EU Member States, third countries associated to the Programme, and third countries not associated to the Programme. The call targets VET providers, private sector enterprises, business associations, and public stakeholders.

Funding Type:The funding type is a grant, specifically an ERASMUS Lump Sum Grant (ERASMUS-LS).

Consortium Requirement:The opportunity requires multilateral partnerships, implying a consortium of multiple applicants.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility):The geographic eligibility includes EU Member States, third countries associated to the Erasmus+ Programme, and third countries not associated to the Programme. The focus is on supporting VET institutions and systems in third countries not associated to the Programme.

Target Sector:The target sector is vocational education and training (VET). The program aims to enhance the relevance, accessibility, and responsiveness of VET institutions and systems. It focuses on areas such as management, governance, inclusion, quality assurance, and innovation within VET.

Mentioned Countries:EU Member States, third countries associated to the Erasmus+ Programme, and third countries not associated to the Programme are mentioned. Sub-Saharan Africa is explicitly mentioned in the context of one of the topics ERASMUS-EDU. Other regions mentioned are Central Asia (CA), Latin America (LA), Neighbourhood East (NE), and Western Balkans (WB).

Project Stage:The project stage is capacity building, which implies development and implementation of initiatives to improve VET systems. This suggests projects are beyond the initial idea or research phase and are geared towards development, implementation, and enhancement of existing VET structures.

Funding Amount:The funding amounts vary by topic:

ERASMUS-EDU-2026-CB-VET-CA:€300,000

ERASMUS-EDU-2026-CB-VET-LA:€2,000,000

ERASMUS-EDU-2026-CB-VET-NE:€3,800,000

ERASMUS-EDU-2026-CB-VET-SMC:€6,358,000

ERASMUS-EDU:€7,500,000

ERASMUS-EDU-2026-CB-VET-WB:€8,482,000

Application Type:The application type is an open call with a single-stage submission process.

Nature of Support:Beneficiaries will receive money in the form of lump sum grants.

Application Stages:The application process is single-stage.

Success Rates:The success rates are not explicitly mentioned in the provided text.

Co-funding Requirement:The text does not explicitly mention a co-funding requirement.

Summary:

This opportunity is an ERASMUS+ call for proposals focused on Capacity Building in the Field of Vocational Education and Training (VET). It aims to support the relevance, accessibility, and responsiveness of VET institutions and systems in third countries not associated with the Erasmus+ Programme. The program encourages multilateral partnerships between organizations active in VET from EU Member States, third countries associated with the program, and third countries not associated with the program. The projects should focus on increasing the capacity of VET providers in areas like management, governance, inclusion, quality assurance, and innovation, enabling them to better engage with the private sector and address employment opportunities.

The call is structured around lump sum grants with varying budget allocations for different regions, including Central Asia, Latin America, Neighbourhood East, Sub-Saharan Africa, and the Western Balkans. The application process is a single-stage submission, with a deadline of March 26, 2026. The call aims to align VET provision with local, regional, and national development strategies, improve the quality and responsiveness of VET to socio-economic opportunities, and build the capacity of VET providers to strengthen cooperation between private and public stakeholders.