The EAC Youth Fellowship 2026 is a fully funded program for young leaders across the East African Community. It aims to strengthen leadership, regional integration, and youth engagement through mentorship, training, and networking. The program runs in a blended format, with online sessions followed by in-person sessions in Arusha, Tanzania.
Key Details:
Application Deadline: 18th SeptemberÂ
Eligible Countries: South Africa
Program Duration: 10 days
Program Location: KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng, Western Cape, Mpumalanga, Limpopo, Northern Cape or Free State
Funding/Benefits: Fully funded; fellows may also receive a stipend or allowances (details disclosed to selected participants).
Award Provider: MS TCDC (in partnership with Danida Fellowship Centre)
About SANEDI EPC Skills Development Programme
SANEDI is a public entity that reports to the Department of Electricity and Energy. Its job is to drive energy research, energy efficiency and cleaner energy across South Africa. One of its flagship mandates is the Energy Performance Certificate regulation, which requires owners of larger government and commercial buildings to display a certificate showing how much energy the building uses, similar to the label on a fridge.
Rolling out EPCs across thousands of buildings needs people on the ground to gather building information, collect energy-use data, capture it and check its quality. The EPC Skills Development Programme, coordinated by the Department of Electricity and Energy together with the German development agency GIZ and implemented by SANEDI’s Programme Management Unit, trains a pool of unemployed youth to do exactly that. The first phase is a 10-weekday training course at NQF Level 4, delivered at participating TVET colleges. Top performers from that course are then considered for a further 12-month EPC training programme covering both theory and practical application.
For young people, this is an entry point into the green economy, a sector that will need thousands of energy assessors, data technicians and efficiency specialists as South Africa’s just energy transition accelerates.
Who Can Apply for SANEDI EPC Skills Development Programme?
- South African citizens
- Aged 18 to 35
- Unemployed
- Grade 12 / Matric or an NQF Level 4 equivalent qualification
- Mathematics or Mathematical Literacy passed at Grade 12 or NQF Level 4
- Willing and available for the full 10-day programme
- Able to work independently and in a team
- Willing to take part in field-based data collection and to travel or be placed at designated programme locations
- Resident in KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng, Western Cape, Mpumalanga, Limpopo, Northern Cape or Free State (apply in your own province)
- Women, youth, persons with disabilities and applicants from rural communities are encouraged to apply
What Fellows Receive:
- Energy Performance Certificate fundamentals and the regulations behind them
- Building information gathering and site data collection
- Energy-performance data collection and recording
- Data capturing and verification
- Quality assurance of EPC data
- Field-based data collection experience where required
- An NQF Level 4 training certificate after the 10-day course
- Possible selection for a further 12-month EPC training programme based on performance
Program Components Mentorship, leadership development workshops, seminars, capacity-building sessions, and access to regional professional and policymaker networks. The program is delivered through a blended model with four weeks of online sessions and two weeks of in-person sessions.
How to Apply for SANEDI EPC Skills Development Programme
Required Documents
- Certified copy of your Matric certificate or NQF Level 4 qualification
- Certified copy of your South African ID document
- Both documents must be uploaded when you complete the online application form
- Get certified copies of your ID and Matric certificate and scan them clearly.
- Go to the SANEDI vacancies page and open the EPC SDP Graduate Training Programme.
- Read the learnership specification document available on the page.
- Complete every section of the online application form.
- Upload your certified ID and Matric certificate.
- Submit before 18 September 2026. If you have not heard from SANEDI within 30 days of the closing date, consider your application unsuccessful.
👉 Visit the official fellowship page for details
Why It Matters
Be clear about what this is. The initial 10-day course does not pay a stipend and transport is not guaranteed, so it is not a job. What it is, is free, government-backed technical training with 300 places, no experience requirement and a real pathway: the best performers go on to a 12-month programme, and the skills feed directly into a regulated industry that needs certified EPC assessors and data technicians.
South Africa’s energy efficiency and renewable sector is one of the few areas creating new technical jobs at scale. Energy service companies, consulting firms and building owners all need people who can collect and verify energy data. Ten days of training is a small investment for a matriculant to get a foot into that space, and the certificate and SANEDI name on your CV will count when the next paid opportunity comes up.
