CFYE Call for Solutions 2023

The Challenge Fund for Youth Employment (CFYE) is calling for solutions to create, match, or improve jobs for youth in Egypt, Kenya, Morocco, Nigeria, and Senegal. The CFYE is a 7-year flagship initiative by the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and managed by Palladium, Randstad, and VSO.

The Fund aims to create a prosperous future for young women and men in the Middle East, North Africa, Sahel & West Africa and Horn of Africa. This will be achieved by supporting youth employment initiatives in these regions.

Twice a year the Fund opens a thematic call for concept notes whereby applicants are invited to submit their ideas for projects responding to a challenge in a specific country or region. Once submitted, concept notes will be assessed by a panel of experts and youth representatives. Successful applicants will be invited to submit a full business case. This should describe the pathway to results, the budget and the financing strategy.

There are no restrictions to who can apply to the Fund. Ideas are invited from private sector organisations, civil society and knowledge institutions or from a consortium involving two or more partners. Regardless the status of the applicant, all concept notes and business cases will be assessed against the same criteria.

Since proposed initiatives should have a clear pathway to decent work for youth, both youth themselves and employers will be involved in the design of the project. All projects will need to report on their results and the financial contributions made by the Fund will be clearly linked to the achievement of those results.

In addition, the Fund is looking for sustainable and scalable initiatives implemented by partners who will be able to contribute on average two thirds of the total project budget.

Technical support will be available for applicants throughout the process. The Fund Manager will organise physical and online information sessions for potential applicants. Interested parties are welcome to contact the Fund Manager to discuss ideas and seek guidance or support for concept note development. Once projects are selected for implementation, tailored technical support will also be made available to maximise delivery of results.