Minorities Fellowship Programme

About the Fellowship Programme

Launched in 2005, the Minorities Fellowship Programme (MFP) is OHCHR’s most comprehensive training programme for human rights and minority rights defenders belonging to national or ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities.

At the end of the MFP, the fellows 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. Fellows should also be capable of further training their communities/organizations.

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 Programme is offered in three linguistic components: English, Russian, and Arabic.

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.

Who can apply

1. 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 our Indigenous Fellowship Programme. Please note that the Indigenous Fellowship is a separate programme and has different application forms and deadlines.
2. Formal education should not be a limitation to participation in the Minorities Fellowship Programme, if relevant experience can be demonstrated.
3. 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.
4. Candidates must have good working knowledge of the language in which the programme is imparted.
5. 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.
6. 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.

Selection process

An advisory group composed of OHCHR staff undertakes the selection of successful candidates.

The selection of fellows reflects a gender and regional balance. We also take into consideration the general human rights situation in the respective regions/countries, and the situation of the minority community to which the applicant belongs.

In view of the large number of applications, we regret to inform that only successful candidates will be contacted.

How to apply

Online fellowship application are available in English | Russian | Arabic

Publications and resources

FAQs - Indigenous and Minorities Fellowship Programmes