EUNIC's Africa-Europe Spaces of Culture is part of the Africa-Europe Partnerships for Culture programme, funded by the European Union.
This wider programme fosters cooperation on an equal footing between African and European artists, creators, and cultural professionals, strengthening cultural exchange and cross-border collaboration.
More than a set of initiatives, the programme represents a shared commitment to building a relationship between Africa and Europe that is rooted in mutual respect, co-creation and long-term collaboration. With a total investment of EUR 70 million, the programme is financed by the European Union, with additional funding provided by EU Member States.
The programme is structured along the lines of a continental, a West African and a Southern African component. The continental component aims to foster continent-to-continent and people-to-people cultural exchange, co-creation and co-production. A portion of this component is dedicated to the Spaces of Culture.
The Spaces of Culture programme brings an exciting opportunity to:
- place focus on networking and relationships, new audiences, and opening up civic space;
- continue to cultivate and develop a shared cultural relations approach to cooperation between Africa and the European Union (EU);
- explore in more depth approaches to fair collaboration in Africa including new and balanced partnerships between Europe and Africa and considerations of ethical sensitivities linked to colonial legacies.
The programme is modelled after European Spaces of Culture, which since 2019 has been putting the European Union’s approach to international cultural relations into concrete action in countries outside the EU.
The programme deepens the work done by European Spaces of Culture by supporting new alliances with local actors that are until now less involved in Africa-Europe cultural relations, as well as a broader implementation of the Team Europe approach, by involving a wider range of EU Member States.
Not only do such initiatives create innovative and meaningful projects, but they also strengthen local and fair partnerships between African and European actors, place on the agenda important societal topics and lead to invaluable insights into the practice of international cultural relations between Africa and the EU.
Through open calls for proposals, the programme supports concrete cultural relations projects taking place in Sub-Saharan African countries, with grants of up to 50,000 euros. These projects take up to one year, with the aim to continue and grow.
The programme seeks projects that are designed and implemented by triangular partnerships – based on equal access and co-ownership – of local cultural and civil society stakeholders from the country(ies) concerned, members of the EUNIC network, and EU Delegations active on the continent.
Proposals are evaluated against the selection criteria.by an independent jury of experts from Sub-Saharan Africa and Europe, experienced in Africa-Europe cultural relations.
Supported projects will demonstrate innovation and relevance to the local context and exemplify both fair partnerships and an elaboration of the Team Europe approach in Sub-Saharan Africa.
The first call was launched in 2025, resulting in the first seven projects funded under Africa-Europe Spaces of Culture. The second call was launched in March 2026, and will close on 21 June.
In addition to the projects funded under the programme, EUNIC also takes the opportunity of dedicated funding for Sub-Saharan Africa to convene members, partners and experts on the continent more regularly.
The first regional seminar under the umbrella of the programme, taking place in Johannesburg in October 2025, brought together EUNIC colleagues, Africa-Europe Spaces of Culture independent expert jury members, local cultural partners from supported projects and colleagues from European Union Delegations, for three days of exchange, discussion and reflection.
The seminar explored the topics, needs, and opportunities emerging from the region’s dynamic cultural and creative sectors, through the lens of projects and partnerships:
- How can we work collaboratively looking beyond our own individual a organisation structures or constraints in Sub-Saharan Africa?
- How to address and act on the commitment to fair collaboration in Africa-Europe cultural relations?
- How can we ensure our work is better attuned to the diverse cultural, social, economic, political and security contexts in the region?
Two more seminars will follow in 2027 and 2028.
If you have any questions about the programme or the latest calls, please contact Robert Kieft at robert.kieft@eunicglobal.eu or Thoriso Moseneke at thoriso.moseneke@eunicglobal.eu.
