UN OHCHR Fellowship Programme for People of African Descent 2025 (Fully-funded to Geneva)

The United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) is now accepting applications for its 2025 Fellowship Programme for People of African Descent, a prestigious, fully funded human rights training.

📅 Fellowship Dates: 10–28 November 2025
🕒 Application Deadline: 30 June 2025
📍 Location: Geneva, Switzerland

Participant’s Entitlement

Each fellow is entitled to a return ticket (economy class) from the country of residence to Geneva; basic health insurance; and a stipend to cover modest accommodation and other living expenses for the duration of the Programme.

Programme Overview

The Fellowship Programme for People of African Descent is an intensive human rights training designed for individuals of African descent from the diaspora who are actively involved in promoting the rights of people of African descent.

The program is held annually at the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in Geneva.

The Fellowship Programme offers participants the opportunity to:

• Learn about and deepen their understanding of international human rights law and the UN human rights system, the international framework to combat racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia, and related intolerance, and intersecting issues with a focus on people of African descent.

• Gain first-hand exposure to international human rights mechanisms and OHCHR.
• Engage with international human rights mechanisms and OHCHR and strengthen skills in developing project proposals and delivering presentations.

Initiated by the OHCHR Anti-Racial Discrimination Section in 2011, the programme has been further supported by the United Nations General Assembly resolution A/RES/69/16 on the Programme of activities for the implementation of the International Decade for People of African Descent.

The High Commissioner serves as the coordinator of the Decade. The 2025 Fellowship Programme will be the first to take place during the Second International Decade for People of African Descent (2025-2034), proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in December 2024 by resolution A/RES/79/193.

Purpose of the Programme

The programme aims to enhance participants’ skills to contribute to the promotion and protection of the civil, political, economic, social, and cultural rights of people of African descent in their respective countries.

Participants are equipped with the necessary tools to: ensure the development of legislation, policies, and programmes aligns with international human rights standards; strengthen collaboration of civil society with governments; and undertake local awareness-raising and advocacy activities.

Voices from Former Fellows

Voices of the Decade features 11 stories of fellows of African descent, providing a snapshot of their important and inspiring work achieved to promote the human rights of people of African descent throughout the world.

Voices of the Decade serves as both a call and a source of inspiration for collective efforts towards recognition, justice, and development for people of African descent.

Former participants also share their experiences about the Fellowship Programme for People of African Descent.

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible for the Fellowship Programme, the candidate must:

• Be an individual of African descent living in the Diaspora.
• Possess a minimum of 4 years of work experience related to the rights of People of African Descent.

• Submit an official letter from an organization working on issues related to people of African descent or minority rights – on official letterhead – certifying the candidate’s role within the organization.
• Be available to attend the full duration of the programme. Selected fellows are expected to participate in all activities and strictly follow the programme.

Programme Dates and Location

The Fellowship will be held from 10 to 28 November 2025 in Geneva, Switzerland. In addition, fellows are expected to dedicate a few hours to pre-online courses and preparatory assignments in the preceding two weeks.

Application Process

Applications can be submitted in English.

IMPORTANT! OHCHR regrets to inform that due to the financial situation currently facing the United Nations, the 2025 Fellowship Programme for People of African Descent will be delivered in English only, due to insufficient funds to cover the provision of interpretation services in other languages.

Applicants are requested to submit the following documents in one single e-mail to ohchr-africandescentfellowship@un.org:

• A Curriculum Vitae
• A completed, signed, and scanned Application Form in one single document.

• A personal statement (maximum 500 words) in which the candidate explains their motivation for applying, and how they will use the knowledge gained from the fellowship to promote the interests and rights of people of African descent.

• An official letter from an organisation working on issues related to people of African descent or minority rights – on official letterhead – certifying the candidate’s role within the organization.
• A copy of the applicant’s passport.

Please note that submissions with more than five attachments will not be accepted.

Important: Please mention in the subject header of your e-mail: “Application for the 2025 Fellowship Programme for People of African Descent.”

Name the attached documents as follows:

• LAST NAME First name – Type of document
• Example: SMITH Jacqueline – Application form.doc
• SMITH Jacqueline – A Personal Statement.doc
• SMITH Jacqueline – Official letter from nominating organisation .pdf
• SMITH Jacqueline – Passport.pdf

The deadline for applications is 30 June 2025.

Selection Process

The selection of the fellows will reflect gender and regional balance. The human rights situation of people of African descent in the respective countries will also be taken into consideration.

Please note that because of the volume of messages, applications will not be acknowledged, and only short-listed candidates will be notified by email.

A notification will be published on the OHCHR webpage of the Fellowship Programme when the selection process is completed.

Disclaimer: YüthAxis is not in any way affiliated with the hiring organization. Please direct your applications and any enquiries to the hiring company. Read our Terms of Use for more.