The OHCHR Indigenous Fellowship Program was established in 1997 by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in the context of the First International Decade of the World’s Indigenous People.
About the OHCHR Indigenous Fellowship Program.
The OHCHR Indigenous Fellowship Program aims to provide Indigenous Peoples with the opportunity to learn about the work of UN institutions and mechanisms that deal with human rights in general and Indigenous Peoples’ issues in particular.
Participants who complete the internship will be able to better assist their organizations and communities in protecting and promoting their rights.
The four-week fellowship program for the summer of 2024 will be available in 5 languages: English, Spanish, French, Russian and Portuguese.
Please note that applications for the 2024 OHCHR Indigenous Fellowship Program (for all five language components) will be accepted until Saturday,
30 September 2023.
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When does the OHCHR Indigenous Fellowship Program take place?
Fellows from all five language components of the programme are trained with simultaneous interpretation over four weeks in Geneva. The date of the training programme usually coincides with the annual session of the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (June/July each year), allowing the fellows to participate more actively in that Mechanism.
What does the OHCHR Indigenous Fellowship Program cover?
The selected candidates are entitled to a return flight ticket, living expenses and basic health insurance for the duration of the training.
Who can apply for the OHCHR Indigenous Fellowship Program?
- The candidate must be indigenous (non-indigenous persons will not be considered, even if they have close links with indigenous communities and/or organizations).
- Age should not be a limitation to participation in the programme.
- Formal education should not limit participation in the IFP, given the socio-economic barriers confronted by many indigenous peoples that limit access to formal educational institutions.
- Candidates should agree to train other indigenous persons after they return to their respective communities/organizations.
- The candidate should be proposed, and their candidacy should be supported by their indigenous organization and/or community. It is desirable that the sponsoring organization has a firm constituency or membership and is representative.
- The candidate should have an excellent working knowledge of the language in which the programme is imparted.
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How to apply for the OHCHR Indigenous Fellowship Program 2024.
We strongly encourage you to send your application form well before the deadline. Fellowship applications will only be taken into consideration if they are fully completed. Both parts I and II of the application form must be signed and sent by regular post to the following address:
Mr. Morse Caoagas Flores
Coordinator, Indigenous Fellowship Programme
Indigenous Peoples and Minorities Section
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
48, Avenue Giuseppe-Motta, Office 2-05
CH-1211 Geneva 10
Switzerland
Scanned applications are also accepted and can be sent to the following email: ohchr-fellowship@un.org and copy: morse.flores@un.org
Application forms must accompany an official recommendation letter from the nominating indigenous organization or community.
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Selection Process.
The selection of fellows reflects a gender and regional balance and a balance between the communities represented. The general human rights situation in the respective regions/countries is also considered.
Previous indigenous fellows make a pre-selection of 15 to 20 candidates per language group.
The selection process also entails interviews of pre-selected candidates who applied to the programme’s English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, or Russian language components.
In the case of the Portuguese, Spanish and Russian language components of the programme, the selection of candidates is also carried out in collaboration with partner universities (University of Brasilia, University of Deusto, and the PePeoples’riendship University of Russia) that provide the preparatory training courses to the OHCHR Indigenous Fellowship Program.
The final selection of successful candidates is reviewed by an advisory group composed of OHCHR staff.
Because of the large number of applications, only pre-selected candidates are contacted.
Any other questions?
Any questions about the Indigenous Fellowship Programme can be emailed to ohchr-fellowship@un.org.
