African Union – European Union Partnership on Food and Nutrition Security and Sustainable Agriculture (FNSSA)

Overview

Supports coordination and scaling of research and innovation in food and nutrition security and sustainable agriculture (FNSSA) between African Union (AU) and European Union (EU) members. Targets consortia that enhance policy alignment, funder collaboration, and the commercialization of prior FNSSA projects, including start-ups and SMEs.

Who Can Apply

Consortia of legal entities, including:

• Organizations from EU Member States, Horizon Europe Associated Countries, and African Union member states (minimum three independent legal entities from AU member states).
• International organizations with headquarters in an EU Member State or Associated Country.
• Joint Research Centre (JRC) may participate as a beneficiary with zero funding or as an associated partner.

Funding Details

• Maximum grant amount: 11,000,000 EUR (lump sum).
• Financial support to third parties (FSTP) permitted as grants, with a maximum of 60,000 EUR per third party.

What Is Funded

• Strengthening the FNSSA Working Group’s strategic functioning and capacities.
• Operationalizing the International Research Consortium (IRC) as a platform for multi-stakeholder coordination and funding.
• Scaling technical and social innovations from prior HLPD-FNSSA projects (e.g., African Union Research Grants, ERA-Nets, Horizon 2020/Horizon Europe, DeSIRA).
• Mentoring and accelerating start-ups and SMEs, with a focus on women, young entrepreneurs, and diaspora-led initiatives.
• Cascading funding for research, development, testing, or validation of approaches.

Technology / Maturity Requirements

• Projects must be at Technology Readiness Levels (TRL) 7–9.

Key Dates

• Open date: 2027-04-19
• Deadline: 2027-09-22

Application Process (High-Level)

• Single-stage submission via the Funding & Tenders Portal.
• Proposals must adhere to page limits and layout specified in the Horizon Europe Work Programme General Annexes.

Geographic Scope & Language

• Eligible countries: EU Member States, Horizon Europe Associated Countries (Norway, Iceland, United Kingdom, Switzerland), and African Union member states.
• Application language: English.

Notes

• Consortia must include at least three independent legal entities from African Union member states.
• Proposals may involve financial support to third parties (e.g., researchers, start-ups, SMEs) for specific activities.
• Collaboration with the Joint Research Centre (JRC) is encouraged for knowledge leverage and dissemination.
• Projects should complement EU Global Gateway Strategy initiatives, such as the AU-EU Innovation Agenda and DeSIRA+.