Eighteen Fellowships Awarded for 2010 United Nations

 

International Law Fellowship Programme

 

Eighteen fellows were selected for the United Nations International Law Fellowship Programme on 23 March by Patricia O’Brien, Under-Secretary-General for Legal Affairs, Legal Counsel of the United Nations.  The candidates ‑‑ nine women and nine men ‑‑ were from Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Chile, Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ecuador, Indonesia, Mauritius, Niger, Qatar, Russian Federation, Senegal, Sudan, Togo, Ukraine and Viet Nam.

Self-funded participants are usually also granted access to the Programme.  This year, two self-funded places have been offered to two female candidates from Australia and the Czech Republic.

The United Nations International Law Fellowship Programme was launched in 1965 under the United Nations Programme of Assistance in the Teaching, Study, Dissemination and Wider Appreciation of International Law.  The Codification Division of the United Nations Office of Legal Affairs organizes the Programme on an annual basis in The Hague, Netherlands.  This year, the Programme will take place from 5 July to 13 August.  The courses will be conducted in French.

The aim of the Fellowship Programme is to enable qualified professionals from least developed and developing countries, as well as from countries with economies in transition, in particular mid-level Government officials, and young professors and lecturers of international law, to deepen their knowledge of international law and the legal work of the United Nations and its associated bodies.

To qualify for the fellowships, candidates should be law graduates with practical experience in the field of international law, acquired by working for a public or private organization or university.  Eligibility requires that the candidate be between 24 and 40 years of age.

This year, for the 2010 Programme, 231 candidates from 59 countries submitted their applications.  Nominations were received from 159 male and 72 female candidates from the following regions:  179 from Africa; 12 from Asia and the Pacific; 8 from Central Asia and Eastern Europe; 19 from Latin America and the Caribbean; and 8 from the Middle East.  Five applications were received for participation on a self-funded basis.

* *** *

For information media • not an official record