New Release: Boosting EU-LAC Cooperation in Education and Youth
17-10-2025Our Collaboration with Equipo Europa
Within the framework of the Forum on the Future of the EU, GEYC and Equipo Europa collaborated on this important publication about the future of the Erasmus+ programme in EU-Latin America relations. This collaboration reflects our shared commitment to more equitable and inclusive educational cooperation.
Challenges and Opportunities for Erasmus+ in Latin America
Although EU-Latin America political relations have experienced a revival in the last decade, cooperation in education and youth mobility has suffered significant deterioration. Our policy brief highlights a dramatic reduction in Erasmus+ opportunities for the Latin American region in the 2021-2027 programming period.
Despite the fact that the Erasmus+ programme budget has doubled, reaching over €24 billion, only approximately €196 million (less than 1% of the budget) has been allocated to the Americas region, drastically limiting mobility and partnership opportunities.
Structural Transformations and Their Impact
Between 2014-2020, Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) were eligible partners for capacity building projects in the field of youth and university cooperation, with balanced opportunities in both directions. Over 9,000 mobilities took place in bilateral Erasmus+ projects between 2015 and 2020, with 5,463 students and staff from Latin America to the EU and 3,595 in the opposite direction.
Since 2021, LAC participates in Erasmus+ solely as a Partner Region, with access limited to specific decentralized instruments and through EU external action funding mechanisms such as NDICI-Global Europe. This shift has had major repercussions on youth exchanges, higher education cooperation, and civil society ties.
Key Statistical Data
- 3,461 Erasmus Mundus scholarships were awarded to students from LAC between 2014-2022, concentrated primarily in Brazil (966), Mexico (741), and Colombia (514)
- Central American and Caribbean countries remained marginalized, with scholarship numbers often in the dozens or even fewer
- 42% of Latin America's population is under 25, representing enormous potential for innovation and collaboration
- 37% of CELAC respondents identify access to free, quality education as a major challenge
The Strategic Importance of Erasmus+ for EU-LAC Relations
The policy brief emphasizes that Erasmus+ has evolved from a mobility initiative within Europe to a long-term instrument of people-to-people diplomacy and transatlantic cooperation. For the European Union, the programme is simultaneously a vehicle for educational excellence and a tool of external action, contributing to the EU's broader goals of democratic engagement, intercultural dialogue, and sustainable development in partner regions such as LAC.
Erasmus+ alumni form transatlantic and global networks that promote knowledge exchange, leadership, and innovation, acting as "knowledge bridges" and "diplomatic infrastructure" that support bi-regional trust and collaboration.
Key Recommendations
1. Simplifying procedures and strengthening support - Reducing bureaucracy and clarifying eligibility rules through better-resourced National Focal Points
2. Ensuring balance and inclusiveness - Correcting uneven distribution of opportunities by introducing dedicated funds and corrective measures for smaller countries and NGOs
3. Aligning Erasmus+ with political priorities - Systematically integrating Erasmus+ into broader EU-LAC strategies (Global Gateway, EU-CELAC agenda) with clear mobility targets and governance mechanisms
4. Reinforcing youth participation and future-oriented skills - Mandating more youth input in Erasmus+ governance, expanding professional internships and green/digital skills opportunities, and establishing a permanent EU-LAC Youth Council
Read the Full Publication
To gain an in-depth understanding of the challenges and opportunities of the Erasmus+ programme in EU-Latin America relations, as well as to explore all detailed recommendations and their academic foundation, we invite you to consult the full publication below:
About the Collaboration
This policy brief was produced in collaboration between GEYC, PRISMA EU Network and Equipo Europa, within the framework of the Forum on the Future of the EU. The publication represents a joint effort of analysis and advocacy for improving educational and youth cooperation between the European Union and Latin America.
The authors of the publication are: Delia Dinca, Yago Piera (Equipo Europa), Lina Boicu, Gabriel Brezoiu (GEYC, PRISMA European Network).