Minority fellowships available
Fellowships are being provided by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to persons belonging to national or ethnic religious and linguistic minorities - particularly young minority women and men. The Minorities Fellows will have the opportunity to gain knowledge on the UN system and mechanisms dealing with international human rights in general and minority rights in particular. The fellowship program is intended to assist organizations and communities in protecting and promoting the rights of minorities they represent or belong to.
By the end of the program, the Minorities Fellows are expected to be able to give trainings within their communities and organizations on the information and knowledge gained during the program.
The deadline for application to the 2007 fellowship program is 15 December 2006. Five fellows will be chosen to participate in the 2007 program to be held between March and August.
Each fellow will be entitled to the following: a return air ticket (economy class) from the country of residence to Geneva; a monthly grant to cover modest accommodation as well as other living expenses in Geneva for the duration of the program; and health insurance for the duration of the program.
The candidates must belong to a minority group with no limitation of the age, although preference initially will be given to candidates between 25 and 35 years old. Requirement for formal education is not limited if relevant experience can be demonstrated. They should have ability and willingness to train other persons belonging to minorities upon return to their respective communities/organizations. They should have the written support of their community or organization. They must have a good understanding of English language, as all trainings and debriefings will be conducted in English.
The overall goal of the Minorities Fellowship Programme is to offer persons belonging to minorities the opportunity to gain knowledge and skills in the field of international human rights in order to assist their organizations and communities in protecting and promoting human and minority rights. Therefore, it is important that the candidate proposed and nominated by a minority organization or community be someone who will return to his or her non-govermental organization to work in this field.
Only successful candidates will be contacted.
Fellowship applications will only be taken into consideration if they are fully completed. They must be signed and either faxed or scanned by email or sent by regular post at the following address:
Minorities Fellowship Programme
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
UNOG-OHCHR
CH-1211 Geneva 10
Switzerland
Telephone number: (+ 41 22) 917 9204 or 917 9272
Telefax number: (+41 22) 917 9010
E-mailed applications will not be taken into consideration, unless they are signed and scanned.
Any questions pertaining to the Minority Fellowship Programme can be sent to the address mentioned above or E-mailed to: e-mail minorities@ohchr.org.