TEN NEW FELLOWSHIPS AWARDED FOR ADVANCED RESEARCH IN OCEAN AFFAIRS

NEW YORK, 14 November (DOALOS) -- The United Nations-Nippon Foundation of Japan Fellowship Programme Selection Committee today announced the award of 10 new Fellowships to professionals from developing coastal States to undertake advanced research and studies in Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea.

The Fellowship Programme is implemented by the United Nations Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea (DOALOS), Office of Legal Affairs, in cooperation with the Technical Cooperation Management Services, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, and with funding provided by the Nippon Foundation of Japan.  The nine-month Fellowship Programme provides Government officials and other mid-level professionals from developing coastal States an opportunity to undertake advanced research and studies in the field of Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea or related disciplines, including marine sciences.

The Programme was established in 2004 in response to calls from United Nations Member States for increased opportunities in capacity-building for their citizens, so they could obtain the necessary skills to assist their Governments in the formulation and implementation of comprehensive and sustainable ocean management regimes at all levels.

Under the Programme, each Fellowship is composed of two phases:  a nine-month academic phase, which is hosted by one of the 31 prestigious participating academic institutions; followed by a three-month practicum phase, hosted by the Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea in New York.

This year’s Fellowships have been awarded to candidates from Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Cambodia, Cameroon, Colombia, Comoros, Guatemala, Indonesia, Maldives, and Thailand.

This marks the third round of Fellowship awards, with 10 awards having been granted during each of the previous two years.  For the 2005 round, candidates from the following States received awards:   Bahamas, Bangladesh, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Libya, Mauritius, Peru, Philippines, Saint Lucia, and Viet Nam.  The subsequent round, for 2006, saw awards made to the candidates from the following States:   Chile, Georgia, Indonesia, Madagascar, Mozambique, Myanmar, Solomon Islands, Sri Lanka, United Republic of Tanzania, and Thailand.

Additional information regarding this Fellowship Programme may be obtained by contacting the Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea, Office of Legal Affairs of the United Nations, and by visiting the Programme website on www.un.org/depts/los/nippon.

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For information media • not an official record