EU strengthens support for preventing violent extremism and terrorism

Violent extremism and terrorism are growing phenomena throughout the world. Groups increasingly blend global ideologies with local grievances, creating threats that are fragmented and difficult to contain.

Experience over recent years has shown that prevention must begin within communities, where trust can be built and root causes addressed.

As the Co-Chair of the Global Counterterrorism Forum, the EU champions multilateralism as the only sustainable path forward. This is why the European Union (EU) remains a strong partner of the Global Community Engagement and Resilience Fund (GCERF), the world’s only fund dedicated to preventing violent extremism. GCERF’s approach invests directly in local civil society, helping communities address vulnerabilities before extremist narratives can take hold. 

In its first ten years, GCERF has reached more than 4 million people at risk of radicalisation. At just USD 30 per person, this work demonstrates that prevention is not only effective but also scalable and cost-efficient.

In 2024, the EU was already GCERF’s largest donor. At the fund’s recent pledging conference in New York, held alongside the UN General Assembly (UNGA), the EU reaffirmed its commitment with a new pledge of EUR 10 million to expand these efforts further.

Scaling up proven approaches
This new support will help strengthen:

• education and employment opportunities for young people;
• psychosocial support and social cohesion;
• credible local voices that counter radicalisation both online and offline;
• prosecution, rehabilitation and reintegration pathways for former fighters and their families.

Restoring dignity, building resilience
Drawing on lessons from the Western Balkans, Iraq and elsewhere, GCERF has shown that successful reintegration reduces the risk of violence recurring while restoring dignity to individuals and communities.

By backing GCERF, the EU is investing in prevention as a vital complement to security and justice responses. This approach tackles local drivers of extremism before they escalate into violence with global repercussions.

Share this article: