Colruyt Group Foundation and Enabel launch the Youth Incubator

Colruyt Group Foundation and Enabel, the Belgian development agency, today launch the Youth Incubator, a five-year project that guides and supports young people in developing high-impact projects focused on international cooperation. At a time of budgetary constraints, this public–private partnership could well become the new standard for supporting social initiatives.
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​The Youth Incubator was created in response to the observation that many young people are concerned about the future. ​ Climate change, international conflicts and social inequality: young people feel the urgency. They want to actively contribute to a more just and sustainable world. At the same time, they do not always know where to turn, feel that existing initiatives offer too little flexibility, or believe that they do not sufficiently guarantee diversity. “We believe that young people are a powerful lever for social change. With the Youth Incubator, we want to provide them with the right support to develop their ideas around international cooperation and strengthen them in their social engagement,” explains Stefan Goethaert, Chair of Colruyt Group Foundation. ​ ​
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​The Youth Incubator is a support programme that focuses on strengthening skills, knowledge, personal development and (international) networking. The concrete content of the programme is tailored to the needs of the participants and includes, for example, workshops on pitching a project effectively and fundraising, as well as guidance from subject-matter experts and mentors. “Young people relate to one another and with engaged young people worldwide. In this way, we offer them concrete opportunities to realise their projects, both in Belgium and elsewhere in the world. Examples include a podcast series on peace in Ukraine or a documentary on the impact of climate change on the food chain in Belgium and Benin,” explains Jean Van Wetter, CEO of Enabel. ​
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​Within this project, Colruyt Group Foundation and BeGlobal (Enabel’s youth programme) make their expertise, network and budget available to young people aged 18 to 35 from Belgium and partner countries. The project also works with various (youth) organisations, such as YOUCA and Globelink, which have many years of experience in mobilising young people around global issues. Participants can join the incubator in three ways: via youth organisations, through a project call in Belgium, and at a later stage through a project call in one of the partner countries. Each pathway follows its own trajectory, lasting a maximum of two years. ​
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​The ambition of the Youth Incubator over the next five years is to support 90 young people. This corresponds to around 34 projects, with 1 to 4 young people per project. Some of these projects will be selected for additional support to grow further into sustainable initiatives. Youth organisations will start the first phase of the project in February, and the first project call will be launched in the summer of 2026.
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​The collaboration between Colruyt Group Foundation and BeGlobal (Enabel) is a unique and innovative partnership in which the strengths of a corporate foundation and a public actor complement one another. Moreover, for Enabel, the incubator represents its first collaboration in Belgium with a private partner. “The incubator closely aligns with the vision of Colruyt Group Foundation, which sees young people as entrepreneurs of their own lives, with a strong focus on personal development,” explains Stefan Goethaert, Chair of Colruyt Group Foundation.
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​Jean Van Wetter, CEO of Enabel, agrees and adds: “By giving young people opportunities to engage and work together across borders, we not only strengthen their understanding of global challenges, but also their confidence and ability to contribute to a more sustainable and just world.”