Plan International Youth Challenge Fund Phase 4 (Up To €7000 in Funding)

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Applications are open for Plan International Youth Challenge Fund Phase 4. Plan International has announced the launch of the Youth Challenge Fund (YCF) – Edition 4, a program designed to empower young activist groups in West and Central Africa who are driving change in their communities.

The Fund will provide up to 5,000 EUR (potentially up to 7,000 EUR for past grantees) to unregistered and registered groups, collectives and/or organizations led by girls or young feminists working towards gender equality in their communities. These funds are flexible, meaning that groups can decide how they spend these funds. Groups will have seven months to implement their activities and will become part of the Youth Challenge Fund network, which will provide accompaniment support to build groups’ strengths and connect with other youth groups.

Plan International Youth Challenge Fund Focus Areas

In this funding round, they are accepting proposals from 7 key areas of activism. These areas were identified by youth activists in the region as priorities for young people. They welcome proposals that are gender transformative, which means that they challenge social norms that reinforce gender inequality and address the root causes of that inequality. The areas of focus are:

Girls’ Employment & Entrepreneurship
Protection from Violence
Youth Leadership & Mentorship
Girls Access to Quality Education
Climate Change, Environment & Livelihoods
Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights
Humanitarian Response & Emergency

Benefits

The grant award is only one aspect of the Youth Challenge Fund. If you are successful:

You will join the Youth Challenge Fund 4 network and be supported on a journey to strengthen your activism. This will include at least 5 capacity strengthening sessions, defined by your needs, run online by different County Offices and the West and Central Africa Regional Hub.
You will have access to all the tools and resources available on the Equality Accelerator platform and help define new tools needed.
You will have support from a dedicated Plan Country Office staff member to support the implementation of your project, as well as online networking opportunities to meet and share learnings with other young activists working in the region.

For the Youth Challenge Fund, you can receive support with:

Non-financial resources:
- Tools
- Technical support
- Capacity building opportunities
- Guidance on collective actions ideas
- Implementation and influencing
Networking

- Enable inspiration for project ideas
- Connections
- Storytelling and sustainability
Funding: The Fund will provide up to 5,000 EUR and up to 7,000 EUR for second or third time grantees. These funds are flexible, and groups can decide how they spend these funds. The funding will be distributed by the end of October 2025 and groups will have seven months to implement their activities with the funding. The recommended way to transfer funding to selected groups is through a bank transfer. However, as this fund will support unregistered and registered groups, having a group bank account is not a requirement, and we will work with you to identify the best and easiest way to disburse the funds.

Eligibility Criteria

To qualify, groups must:

Be led by girls or women aged 15–30 (priority given to feminists aged 15–24).
Have an annual budget below €50,000.
Be independent of government, political parties, religious bodies, and corporations.
Submit proposals that align with at least one YCF priority area.
Provide verification through two references, registration documents (if available), and IDs of two representatives.
Be based in one of the eligible countries: Togo, Liberia, Guinea Bissau, Guinea, Central African Republic, Mali, Sierra Leone, Ghana, Benin, Nigeria, Niger, Cameroon, Burkina Faso, Chad, and Senegal.
Obtain parental or guardian consent if all members are under 18.
For Chad and Senegal, only projects focusing on education for girls and young women will be considered.