Minorities Fellowship Programme

Deadline: 03/05/2010 and 30/07/2010
Open to: candidates belonging to a national, ethnic, linguistic or religious minority group
Fund: full

The Minorities Fellowship Programme (MFP) was launched by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). Through this Programme, the OHCHR aims to give persons belonging to national or ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities – particularly young minority women and men – an opportunity to gain knowledge on the UN system and mechanisms dealing with international human rights in general and minority rights in particular.

The Fellows are based at the OHCHR in Geneva, Switzerland. The programme is interactive and consists of briefings on several topics (e.g. the UN system, OHCHR’s work, human rights mechanisms and instruments) as well as individual and group assignments.

At the end of the Programme, all Fellow should have a general knowledge of the United Nations system, international human rights instruments and mechanisms in general and those relevant to minorities in particular and be capable of further training their communities/organizations.

The programme has currently two linguistic versions: The English programme and the Arabic programme.

Funding
The fellowship covers: a return ticket (economy class) from the country of residence to Geneva, basic health insurance for the duration of the Programme and a grant to cover modest accommodation in Geneva for the duration of the Programme and other living expenses.

Eligibility
1. The candidate must belong to a national, ethnic, linguistic or religious minority group;
2. The candidates must have a good working knowledge of the language in which the programme is imparted;
3. The candidate should be proposed and his/her candidacy supported by his/her organization and/or community.

Application procedure
All interested applicants need to submit following documents:
1. fully completed application form
2. official recommendation letter from the nominating organization or community.

Both parts must be signed and submitted either by fax, email or sent by regular post to the following address:

Minorities Fellowship Programme
Indigenous Peoples and Minorities Unit
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
Palais des Nations
8-14 Avenue de la Paix
CH-1211 Geneva 10
Switzerland

Telefax number: (+41 22) 928 90 66

E-mail: minorityfellowships@ohchr.org

The application deadline for English programme is 3th May 2010 and for Arabic programme 30th July 2010.

More detailed info