The EU Commission has adopted the first annual work programme of Erasmus+ 2021-2027, with a budget of €26.2 billion complemented by about €2.2 billion from the EU’s external instruments. The budget allocated to the new programme shows the high importance that the EU gives to education, youth and lifelong learning, as it is almost double compared to the amount earmarked for the 2014-2020 period.

The new Erasmus+, which covers 33 countries, will fund learning mobility and cross-border cooperation projects. It will seek to be even more inclusive and to support the green and digital transitions, and it will also support the resilience of education and training systems in the face of the pandemic.

The main elements of the new Erasmus+ programme are:

• Inclusive Erasmus+, which provides enhanced opportunities to people with fewer opportunities, including people from diverse cultural, social and economic backgrounds, and people living in rural and remote areas.
• Digital Erasmus+, which aims to accelerate the digital transition of education and training systems.
• Green Erasmus+, which includes actions in line with the European Green Deal (e.g. offering financial incentives to participants using sustainable modes of transport).
• Erasmus+ for young people, which presents the DiscoverEU initiative as an integral part of Erasmus+.

The first calls for proposals (2021 – EAC/A01/2021) within the new work programme have been also published. Any public or private body active in the fields of education, training, youth and sport can apply for funding according to the call’s requirements.

The deadlines for projects’ submissions are the following (in Brussels time):

Key Action 1 (KA1) – Learning mobility of individuals

• Mobility of individuals in the field of higher education, 11 May at 12:00
• Mobility of individuals in VET, school education and adult education fields, 11 May at 12:00
• Erasmus Accreditations in VET, school education and adult education, 19 October at 12:00
• Mobility of individuals in the field of youth, 11 May at 12:00
• Mobility of individuals in the field of youth, 5 October at 12:00

Key Action 2 (KA2) – Cooperation among organisations and institutions

• Cooperation partnerships in the fields of education, training and youth, except for those submitted by European NGOs, 20 May at 12:00
• Cooperation partnerships in the fields of education, training and youth submitted by European NGOs, 20 May at 17:00 (NEW DEADLINE 15 June at h 17:00)
• Cooperation partnerships in the field of sport, 20 May at 17:00 (NEW DEADLINE 17 June at h 17:00)
• Small-scale partnerships in the fields of education and training and youth, 20 May at 12:00
• Small-scale partnerships in the fields of education and training and youth, 3 November at 12:00
• Small-scale partnerships in the field of sport, 20 May at 17:00 (NEW DEADLINE 17 June at h 17:00)
• Centres of Vocational Excellence, 7 September at 17:00
• Erasmus Teacher Academies, 7 September at 17:00
• Erasmus Mundus Action, 26 May at 17:00 (NEW DEADLINE 17 June at h 17:00)
• Alliances for Innovation, 7 September at 17:00
• Capacity building in the field of youth, 1 July at 17:00
• Non-for-profit Sport Events, 20 May at 17:00 (NEW DEADLINE 17 June at h 17:00)

Key Action 3 (KA3) – Support to policy development and cooperation

• European Youth Together, 24 June at 17:00
• Jean Monnet Actions and Networks, 2 June at 17:00

Considering the AER’s extensive experience with Erasmus+ projects and the opportunities the new Erasmus+ calls offer in relation to the AER’s political priorities and strategies, we are willing to join consortia as a partner. In addition, in order to foster interregional cooperation within – and outside – our network, we are offering our services in terms of partner searches, should you have a project idea and you wish to build a consortium and/or if you don’t have a project idea yourself but wish to join project proposals due to your expertise in the specific field(s).

Don’t hesitate to get in touch with the AER Project Unit.

Contact: Agnese Pantaloni ([email protected])

Photo by Melissa Askew on Unsplash