ECA Fellowship Program for Young African Professionals

Applications are currently being received for the ECA Fellowship Program for Young African Professionals. This fellowship program aims to give young professionals in their early and middle careers in the academy, public sector, or international development practical, on-the-job experience while exposing them to and helping them learn in a multicultural environment of the UN and supporting the work of ECA. Candidates will also have the chance to become acquainted with the extensive programs and services the Commission offers to member States and sub-regional organizations in order to address the economic and social aspects of Africa’s development goals.

Through this fellowship program, the Economic Commission for Africa aims to engage intelligent young Africans for skill and capacity development, training, and mentoring. The Commission’s endeavor to help Member States build their capacities in economic and social policy research, development, implementation, analysis, governance, monitoring, and evaluation. The program wishes to produce a new generation of young African thinkers with excellent policymaking skills and the capacity to assist African nations in the process of economic and social transformation and development.

Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) is the regional arm of the United Nations in Africa. Its mission is to support Africa’s economic and social growth. Due to its twin function as an arm of the UN for the region and a regional institution in Africa, the ECA is in a good position to offer distinctive assistance to member states’ efforts to address their development-related problems. ECA helps African countries in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Agenda 2030, and Agenda 2063 of the African Union through its five sub-regional offices, as well as the African Institute for Economic Development and Planning (IDEP), which is spread across the Continent.

Program Details

• Host Institution: Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) in Ethiopia (Multiple positions at multiple duty stations).
• Thematic Areas: Please find the full list below.
• Number of Awards: Not specified.
• Duration: Up to 12 months.
• Target group: Algeria, Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Congo, Djibouti, DR Congo, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, São Tomé and Príncipe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Sudan, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Gambia (Republic of The), United Republic of Tanzania.

ECA Fellowship Program Benefits

This scholarship is a fully funded program that offers recipients, the following benefits:

1. a return air ticket between his/her country of residence and the assigned duty station;
2. a one-off settling-in grant of USD 3,000 (for fellows recruited from outside of the duty station) and a monthly stipend of USD 3,000 each for the duration of the fellowship. The final month’s stipend will only be paid upon submission of:
   • A peer-reviewed fellowship research paper,
   • A comprehensive fellowship report, an approved final performance evaluation of the fellow,
   • A completed fellowship program evaluation form and
   • An exit boarding pass or immigration stamp showing that the fellow has departed the duty station and returned back to his/her home country, where both are not the same, at the end of the fellowship program.

Thematic Areas of the ECA Fellowship Program

ECA is hereby inviting applications from qualified young African Professionals in the following thematic areas:

• Macroeconomic policy, development planning, Economic Governance & Public Finance;
• Industrialization and Economic Diversification Policies;
• Regional Integration; Infrastructure and Trade
• Private Sector Development & Finance, including Innovative Finance & Capital Markets;
• Poverty, Inequality and social policy;
• Food systems and food security
• Gender equality and women empowerment;
• Demographic Dynamics for Development;
• Innovation and Technology;
• Climate Change &Management of Natural Resources, including Green Economy;
• Labor Economics and Employment
• Communication and strategic planning, monitoring and evaluation.

ECA Fellowship Program Eligibility

To apply for this government scholarship program, applicants must:

• be a national of a Member State of the Economic Commission for Africa (Please find the full list above);
• be 35 years of age or below, at the time of the application;
• have graduated before 1 October 2022 from either a master’s degree or doctorate degree programme, or equivalent;
• should have an interest in one or more of the identified thematic areas.

Furthermore, the selected candidate:

• will work on a predefined project, designed to contribute to specific aspects of the work program of the mentoring Division, Sub-Regional Office or ECA Centres, and contribute to other activities;
• should participate in national, regional, or international meetings as assigned for exposure;
• should submit and present at a seminar a peer-reviewed research paper at the end of the assignment; and
• will be part of an alumni association of ECA Fellows and a member of practicing international development “community of practice”.

Applicants Competencies

Please find below, the required competencies from applicants.

Professionalism: The Fellow(s) should possess in-depth knowledge and understanding of socio-economic and political development issues. They should be able to conceptually and strategically analyze and evaluate critical matters pertaining to Africa’s socio-economic and political issues, and translate development-related data/information into policy-relevant analyses. Additionally, they should be capable of conducting research independently and be reliable and efficient in meeting deadlines and achieving results. They should be motivated by professional rather than personal concerns and have the ability to remain composed in stressful situations.

Communication: The Fellow(s) should possess strong verbal and written communication skills, active listening skills, and be able to respond appropriately. They should demonstrate openness in sharing information and keeping people informed and can adapt their language, tone, style, and format to match their audience. They should also possess the ability to give presentations, both orally and in writing, at high-level conferences, both institutionally, regionally, and internationally.

Teamwork: The Fellow(s) should work well with colleagues to achieve organizational goals and should value other people’s ideas and expertise. They should be willing to learn from others, place team agenda before personal agenda, and accept joint responsibility for team shortcomings. They should also possess the ability to establish and maintain effective working relations with people of different national and cultural backgrounds and respect for diversity.

Education: The Fellow(s) should possess an advanced university degree (Master’s Degree or Doctorate or their equivalents) in economics, development studies, political economy, international affairs, political and social sciences, peace and human security, public administration, law, minerals, and natural resources, engineering, and related field.

Experience: The Fellow(s) should have experience in academic research or academic work related to the focus thematic areas. They should have experience in research/analytical work in socio-economic and political development, natural resource management/law, regional integration, infrastructure development, governance, peace and related areas in the context of Africa, either in the academia, private, public or civil society organizations, is an advantage.

Language: The Fellow(s) should be fluent in English or French and have a working knowledge of the other language. Knowledge of another official language of the United Nations is an advantage.

Responsibilities

Under delegated authority, the Fellow(s) will be held accountable for the following tasks:

• They will collaborate with the receiving/mentoring Division, Sub-Regional Office, or Centre to establish a work schedule centered on economic and social development.
• The Fellow(s) will enhance the Division, Sub-Regional Office, or Centre’s efforts by performing research, analytical studies, drafting reports, and participating in other activities as directed.
• Assignments may involve, but not be limited to, examining, evaluating, interpreting, and analyzing economic, social and political development issues in the designated areas of focus.
• Furthermore, the Fellow(s) will assist with technical and policy reports, and briefing notes and will aid in the organization and servicing of expert group meetings, workshops, and seminars, as well as fulfilling various administrative tasks for the successful completion of activities.
• The Fellow(s) will be expected to compose a research paper and give a presentation on it during their fellowship.

Similar opportunities

1. Government of Romania Scholarship;
2. Chinese Government Scholarship;
3. Swedish Government Scholarship.

How to Apply for the ECA Fellowship Program

To apply for this Africa opportunity Candidates must submit their Administrative Profiles (APs) and the following documents as PDF attachments to the following email: [email protected].

1. UN Administrative Profile (AP)* in PDF format, including a motivation statement (cover letter) within the AP (to be submitted as an attachment to email submission).
   • The UN AP (Administrative Profile) can be created by signing up for an account at: https://inspira.un.org
   • Applicants should refer to the Annex of this document which contains detailed step-by-step instructions about how to create an AP within the Inspira system and generate a PDF of the document which must be attached to your email submission;
   • There is no Job Opening for this Fellowship within the Inspira system. The instructions referenced above detail how applicants can create a draft AP (not tied to any published Job Opening) within Inspira, and save the draft AP as a PDF for inclusion as an attachment to the applicant’s email submission;
   • The motivation statement is created as part of the online AP creation process in Inspira, and will be visible towards the end of the AP PDF under the heading “Motivation Statement for this Application”;
   • If after reviewing the information above, you are still unable to generate the AP in the indicated PDF format, you may email: Bilen Kassahun at [email protected] for technical support. Please plan your time and attempt to create the draft AP well in advance so that you have sufficient time to seek technical support if needed.
2. A research proposal of not less than 1,000 words (in the candidate’s preferred thematic area listed above) Candidate must clearly indicate the thematic area of choice at the top of the research proposal document
3. Copies of all advanced-level academic degrees obtained (e.g., doctorate and/ or master’s degree(s). As an advanced-level degree is required for the fellowship, first-level (bachelor’s) degrees and certificates should NOT be submitted
4. Copy of applicant’s national passport (information page only); if you hold multiple nationalities, the passport provided should be that of an ECA member State), and;
5. Three letters of reference/recommendation.

The application deadline is January 26, 2023 at 11:59 p.m. Addis Ababa time. For more detail on the ECA Fellowship Program for Young African Professionals, please visit the official page. To be the first to see latest opportunities, please follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram.