{"id":20842,"date":"2025-12-20T12:04:32","date_gmt":"2025-12-20T11:04:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/?p=20842"},"modified":"2026-03-03T12:14:13","modified_gmt":"2026-03-03T11:14:13","slug":"de-eu-afrika-jongerendenktank-2025-jongeren-in-actie-voor-toekomstbestendige-eu-afrika-relaties","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/en\/de-eu-afrika-jongerendenktank-2025-jongeren-in-actie-voor-toekomstbestendige-eu-afrika-relaties\/","title":{"rendered":"EU Africa Youth Think Tank 2025: young people in action for future-proof EU-Africa relations"},"content":{"rendered":"<p data-start=\"413\" data-end=\"690\">2025 marked the second edition of the Africa Youth Think Tank at the Max van der Stoel Foundation. Thirty enthusiastic young people dived deep into the question: how can Europe and Africa build a sustainable, future-proof cooperation in autumn 2025?<\/p>\n<h3 data-start=\"692\" data-end=\"738\"><strong data-start=\"696\" data-end=\"738\">Getting to work on real policy dilemmas<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p data-start=\"776\" data-end=\"932\">The project began in August with a kick-off with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Here, the two policy dilemmas were presented:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<ul data-start=\"934\" data-end=\"1185\">\n<li data-start=\"934\" data-end=\"1042\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-20857 alignright\" src=\"https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_5762-300x225.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" srcset=\"https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_5762-300x225.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_5762-1024x768.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_5762-768x576.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_5762-16x12.jpeg 16w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_5762-1536x1152.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_5762-2048x1536.jpeg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/>\n<p data-start=\"936\" data-end=\"1042\"><em data-start=\"936\" data-end=\"1040\">How does engagement with Africa remain a strategic priority despite other geopolitical challenges?<\/em><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"1043\" data-end=\"1185\">\n<p data-start=\"1045\" data-end=\"1185\"><em data-start=\"1045\" data-end=\"1183\">What is a future-proof economic model for the relationship between Europe and Africa, taking into account demographic changes?<\/em><\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p data-start=\"1187\" data-end=\"1293\">The young people were immediately given context and tools to explore dilemmas during the coming months. During the sessions as well as in their own working time, they examined these dilemmas, gathered information and shared their own insights.<\/p>\n<h3 data-start=\"1295\" data-end=\"1340\"><strong data-start=\"1299\" data-end=\"1340\">Masterclass and Digital Youth Dialogue<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-20930 alignleft\" src=\"https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/IMG_0187-300x225.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" srcset=\"https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/IMG_0187-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/IMG_0187-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/IMG_0187-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/IMG_0187-16x12.jpg 16w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/IMG_0187-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/IMG_0187-2048x1536.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1342\" data-end=\"1742\">In September, the young people attended a master class by an expert from Erasmus University, in which they received in-depth training in international cooperation and policy analysis.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1342\" data-end=\"1742\">At the same time, they participated in a Digital Youth Dialogue with young people from Africa, which allowed them to share and compare their perspectives, a great first step in building a true international dialogue.<\/p>\n<h3 data-start=\"1437\" data-end=\"1482\"><\/h3>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-20873 alignright\" src=\"https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_6579-300x225.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" srcset=\"https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_6579-300x225.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_6579-1024x768.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_6579-768x576.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_6579-16x12.jpeg 16w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_6579-1536x1152.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_6579-2048x1536.jpeg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3 data-start=\"1437\" data-end=\"1482\"><strong data-start=\"1441\" data-end=\"1482\">Skills on point: from lobby to stage<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p data-start=\"1484\" data-end=\"1860\">Besides research, the programme also included a lot of skills development. For instance, the young people attended a workshop on influencing policy by former colleague Jarne van der Poel, received training in public speaking, worked on the dilemmas in their group and visited the Lower House.<\/p>\n<h3 data-start=\"1862\" data-end=\"1902\"><\/h3>\n<h3 data-start=\"1862\" data-end=\"1902\"><strong data-start=\"1866\" data-end=\"1902\">Brussels: an international perspective<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-20871 alignleft\" src=\"https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_6007-300x225.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" srcset=\"https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_6007-300x225.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_6007-1024x768.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_6007-768x576.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_6007-16x12.jpeg 16w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_6007-1536x1152.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_6007-2048x1536.jpeg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1904\" data-end=\"2205\">One of the new additions to the youth think tank this edition was the trip to Brussels, where the young people interacted with experts from European think tanks such as FEPS, Africa Europe Foundation and ECDPM.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-20872 alignright\" src=\"https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_6019-300x225.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" srcset=\"https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_6019-300x225.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_6019-1024x768.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_6019-768x576.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_6019-16x12.jpeg 16w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_6019-1536x1152.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_6019-2048x1536.jpeg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1904\" data-end=\"2205\">The young people also visited the European External Action Service and DG INTPA, where they learned what the priorities and dilemmas are from the EU in their relationship with Africa. We ended the day with a discussion with representatives of UNDP and UNEP at UN House.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1904\" data-end=\"2205\">Through the Brussels trip, the youngsters got a unique insight into how European relations with Africa and the different actors who influenced policy.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3 data-start=\"2207\" data-end=\"2258\"><strong data-start=\"2211\" data-end=\"2258\">Africa Day 2025: from panel to simulation game<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-20864 alignright\" src=\"https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/4992406f-8893-46bb-ad8c-d3e9e4cf98a6-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"305\" height=\"204\" srcset=\"https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/4992406f-8893-46bb-ad8c-d3e9e4cf98a6-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/4992406f-8893-46bb-ad8c-d3e9e4cf98a6-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/4992406f-8893-46bb-ad8c-d3e9e4cf98a6-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/4992406f-8893-46bb-ad8c-d3e9e4cf98a6-18x12.jpg 18w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/4992406f-8893-46bb-ad8c-d3e9e4cf98a6-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/4992406f-8893-46bb-ad8c-d3e9e4cf98a6.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 305px) 100vw, 305px\" \/><\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2260\" data-end=\"2632\">On the <strong data-start=\"2266\" data-end=\"2292\">Africa day in Amsterdam<\/strong> organised two sessions of their own and the young people presented their ideas to the audience.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2260\" data-end=\"2632\">They organised two sessions: a panel with young people from Europe and Africa and a social partner and speaker from BuzA, and a simulation game in which participants worked in game form on solutions to economic dilemmas in the \u201cBlue Economy\u201d framework.<\/p>\n<h3 data-start=\"2634\" data-end=\"2664\"><\/h3>\n<h3 data-start=\"2634\" data-end=\"2664\"><strong data-start=\"2638\" data-end=\"2664\">From ideas to impact<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p data-start=\"2666\" data-end=\"2933\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-20875 alignleft\" src=\"https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_6928-225x300.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"182\" height=\"243\" srcset=\"https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_6928-225x300.jpeg 225w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_6928-768x1024.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_6928-9x12.jpeg 9w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_6928-1152x1536.jpeg 1152w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_6928-1536x2048.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_6928-scaled.jpeg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 182px) 100vw, 182px\" \/>The final products of the track, the two policy recommendations, contain concrete recommendations and insights from the young people. The young people presented these in December at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to officials who deal with these dilemmas on a daily basis.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-20853 alignright\" style=\"font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'Segoe UI', Roboto, 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, 'Noto Sans', sans-serif, 'Apple Color Emoji', 'Segoe UI Emoji', 'Segoe UI Symbol', 'Noto Color Emoji';\" src=\"https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_0180-300x225.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"311\" height=\"233\" srcset=\"https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_0180-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_0180-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_0180-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_0180-16x12.jpg 16w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_0180-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_0180.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 311px) 100vw, 311px\" \/><\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2666\" data-end=\"2933\">By sharing their findings with politicians, the public, civil society and policymakers, young people learn by doing. It shows that young thinkers can make a real difference: from research and debate to lobbying and policy advice, from the Lower House to Brussels.<\/p>\n<h3 data-start=\"2634\" data-end=\"2664\"><\/h3>\n<h3 data-start=\"2634\" data-end=\"2664\"><strong data-start=\"2638\" data-end=\"2664\">The Policy Advice<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p data-start=\"2666\" data-end=\"2933\">Read the <strong>opinions<\/strong> of the two working groups:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li data-start=\"2666\" data-end=\"2933\"><a href=\"https:\/\/drive.google.com\/file\/d\/194myigZIVUR0iPUzUz0J2H1axlS-qUor\/view?usp=sharing\" rel=\"noopener\">Redefining EU-Africa Relations: The Socio-Economic Dilemma<\/a>.<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"2666\" data-end=\"2933\"><a href=\"https:\/\/drive.google.com\/file\/d\/1ZDK5_gWaHa5wvTbT6EvPrst4DuaQkHpN\/view?usp=sharing\" rel=\"noopener\">Revitalising the Youth at Heart Strategy: A Pathway to Placing Africa at the Centre of the Political Agenda Through Equal Partnership<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In 2025 stond de tweede editie van de Afrika Jongerendenktank op de agenda van de Foundation Max van der Stoel. Dertig enthousiaste jongeren doken in het najaar van 2025 diep in de vraag: hoe kunnen Europa en Afrika een duurzame, toekomstbestendige samenwerking opbouwen? Aan de slag met echte beleidsdilemma\u2019s Het project begon in augustus met [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":20867,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-20842","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-dialogue","region-afrika-2","region-eu"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20842","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20842"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20842\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20942,"href":"https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20842\/revisions\/20942"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/20867"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20842"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20842"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/foundationmaxvanderstoel.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20842"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}