Funded United Nations Fellowship

The Indigenous Fellowship Programme (IFP) is a comprehensive human rights training programme that was established by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in the context of the first International Decade of the World’s Indigenous Peoples (1995-2004). The programme contributes to building the capacity and expertise of indigenous representatives on the UN system and mechanisms dealing with human rights in general and indigenous issues in particular, so they are in a better position to protect and promote the rights of their communities at the international level. Since the launch of the training programme in 1997, more than 300 indigenous men and women from all over the world have been trained. They provided human rights training too much more in their communities.

The IFP is accessible in four different languages: English, French, Spanish and Russian. The selected candidates are entitled to a return flight ticket, living expenses and basic health insurance for the duration of the training. The IFP has held annually and fellows from the 4 language components of the programme are trained together with simultaneous interpretation during 4 to 5 weeks in Geneva. The date of the training programme usually coincides with the annual meeting of the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (June/July), thus allowing the fellows to participate more actively in that Mechanism. For more information on the sessions available in the training programme, please visit the above links to the web pages of the language component you are interested in.

Eligibility

1. The candidate must be indigenous (non-indigenous persons will not be taken into consideration, even if they have close links with indigenous communities and/or organisations).
2. Age should not be a limitation to participation in the programme.
3. Formal education should not be a limitation to participation in the IFP given the socio-economic barriers confronted by many indigenous peoples that limit access to formal educational institutions.
4. Candidates should agree to train other indigenous persons after the return to their respective communities/organisations.
5. The candidate should be proposed and his/her candidacy supported by his/her indigenous organisation and/or community. It is desirable that the sponsoring organisation has a firm constituency or membership and that it is representative.
6. The candidate should have a good working knowledge of the language, in which the programme is imparted.

Fellowship

Participants of the Fellowship Programme are entitled to the following:

• Return ticket (economy class) from their country of residence to Geneva;
• Daily or monthly stipend to cover their basic needs in Geneva, including modest accommodation, food and transport;
• Basic health insurance for the duration of the Programme;
• OHCHR will not cover any additional expenses such as visa fees and travel insurance.

Official Link

Deadline: 30th June 2017