Deadline: 10th November 2024 by 11.59 pm EAT
The Mawazo Fellowship Programme is a 15-month, non-residential fellowship. This programme is designed to build a network of African women experts who are poised to influence policy and public discourse in academia and beyond, increasing the application and implementation of practical, evidence-based ideas that drive Africa’s development.
In our current cohort, the Mawazo Fellowship Programme is supporting up to forty (40) women who are pursuing their PhD studies at accredited universities across Africa.
All eligible PhD students are more than welcome to apply, and we particularly encourage applications from those working in the following thematic areas:
● Agriculture and Food Security
● Business, Trade, and the Economy
● Climate Change, Natural Resources, and the Environment
● Education and Pedagogy
● Energy and Engineering
● Gender, Rights, and Governance
● Indigenous Knowledge Systems
● Information and Technology
● Life and Health Sciences
● Mathematical and Physical Sciences
In order to be eligible for the Mawazo Fellowship Programme, applicants must:
- Be a woman (woman/women includes cisgender women and transgender women. We also welcome Assigned Female At Birth (AFAB) non-binary, AFAB gender non-conforming, other AFAB genderqueer individuals, who have historically been excluded from decision-making spaces)
- Be a national of an African country(Born in an African country, originates from a country located on the African continent/refugee/stateless person)
- Have good command of written and spoken English. Individuals from Francophone countries are encouraged to apply with the understanding that the application process will be conducted in English.
- Be enrolled for their PhD at an accredited university in an African country
- Have completed their course work (if applicable) and successfully passed their departmental or graduate school proposal defence. Proof of this will be required.
- Demonstrate that their PhD research is related to African development and is relevant to a global, regional, national or subnational policy priority
- Demonstrate that they have a “Big Idea” to transform Africa through their research ( By ”Big Idea” we mean an innovative research-based solution to help address Africa’s emerging societal challenges)
- Demonstrate potential for leadership both within and outside academia, and a strong passion to leverage their expertise for impact in society
- Be available to fully participate in the programme in 2025-2026
- Be willing to dedicate at least 5-10 hours a week to the programme once selected.
- The Fellowship does not have an age limit. We however strongly encourage applicants under the age of 35 to apply.
Application
Interested candidates are required to fill in and submit their applications via our online application portal. Applications will not be accepted by email or in hard copy.
Applications will be considered complete when the following are provided:
- A completed online application form
- A letter confirming current enrollment in an accredited PhD programme
- A letter confirming that you have completed your course work (or equivalent) and passed your departmental defense
For instructions on how to use our online platform, complete your application and meet all the requirements required for consideration, please download the application guidelines here. For additional information with regards to the programme and the application process, please download our FAQs document here
For more information.