Deadline: 8-Dec-23
The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) is pleased to announce the Minorities Fellowship Programme for human rights and minority rights defenders belonging to national or ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities.
The OHCHR Minorities Fellowship Program was established in 2005 by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) to provide minority rights defenders with the opportunity to learn about the work of UN institutions and mechanisms that deal with human rights, in general, and minority rights, in particular. Participants who complete the fellowship will be able to better assist their organizations and communities in protecting and promoting their rights. The 4-weeks fellowship programme comprise of a 1-week Preparatory Training component in Strasbourg, France and 3-week programme in Geneva. The 2024 cohort will be available in 3 languages: Arabic, English and Russian.
The Programme further serves as an opportunity for human rights activists working towards the protection and promotion of minority rights to expand their partners’ base. They do this by building a strategic dialogue with fellow activists from across the globe, the United Nations, and relevant Geneva-based NGOs, amongst other partners.
The MFP takes place in Geneva, Switzerland. Fellows are entitled to:
- a return ticket (economy class) from the country of residence to Geneva;
- basic health insurance for the duration of the Programme; and
- a stipend to cover modest accommodation and other living expenses for the duration of the Programme.
Eligibility Criteria
- The candidate must belong to a national, ethnic, linguistic or religious minority group (persons who do not belong to a minority group will not be taken into consideration, even if they have close links with minority communities and/or organizations).
- Note: If your community identifies as indigenous, please do not apply to this programme but to their Indigenous Fellowship Programme. Please note that the Indigenous Fellowship is a separate programme and has different application forms and deadlines.
- Formal education should not be a limitation to participation in the Minorities Fellowship Programme, if relevant experience can be demonstrated.
- Candidates should have ability, willingness and possibility to train other persons belonging to minorities upon return to their respective communities/organizations, and should agree to do so.
- Candidates must have good working knowledge of the language in which the programme is imparted.
- The candidate should be proposed—and his/her candidacy supported—by his/her organization and/or community. It is desirable that the sponsoring organization
- has a firm constituency or membership in the minority;
- is representative of minority issues;
- undertakes work on minority issues; and
- is composed of persons belonging to minorities.
- 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 NGO to work in this field.
For more information, visit OHCHR.