Applications call for African Union Democracy and Governance in Africa Youth Innovation Challenge

The African Union (AU), through the African Governance Architecture (AGA) Secretariat, in a joint project with the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) have launched the “Democracy and Governance in Africa – Youth Innovation Challenge”. Youth innovators, innovation hubs, and incubation centers across the continent can participate in the innovation challenge. The challenge calls for existing innovations that are making an impact in the structural prevention of conflict through addressing issues of democracy deficit, lack of good governance, and contribute to the promotion and protection of human rights.

Selection Criteria

• The African Union Youth Innovation Challenge should focus on Youth or innovation that should be led by a young person aged between 18-35.
• Innovators, Innovations, innovation hubs should be based in Africa; African diaspora are open to apply but innovation in focus should be focused or based in Africa.
• The idea or innovation should implement/test with a level of success/ impact but have room for improvement, replication, or scale-up at the national, regional, or continental level.
• Innovation must reflect the mainstreaming of women and gender equality.
• The organizers highly encourage female innovators to apply.

Prizes and Benefits 

The 20 applicants will receive an opportunity for accelerator training to help develop their ideas further; for expansion and greater impact. Experienced trainers and experts will be supporting the ideas to refine, improve, and transform them into initiatives that will be magnified, replicated, or scaled up.

The jury will also screen and shortlist final innovations based on the ideas developed during the accelerator training and select final innovation/s to be awarded. The innovation/s will have a number of opportunities to be acknowledged namely on the African Union Commission’s initiatives on the theme of the year; AGA Annual dialogues, COMESA policy-making bodies, and others.

Thematic Areas

The submission should be based on an existing innovation (digital or non-digital) on or contributing to the following thematic areas;

• Enhancing good governance
• Promoting democracy
• Citizen participation
• Creating social cohesion
• Supporting public service
• Justice and rule of law
• Promoting and protection of human rights
• Other relevant thematic areas that contribute to the AU theme of the year – Silencing the Guns.

More information available here