CALL FOR APPLICATIONS: King's College London, Peace and Security Fellowships for African Women 2010-2011

The Conflict, Security and Development Group (CSDG) at King's College London together with the Africa Leadership Centre (ALC), is pleased to announce a call for applications for the Peace and Security Fellowships for African Women for 2010/2011. These Fellowships are intellectual and financial awards for personal, professional and academic achievements, as well as the recognition of future potential.

From October 2010, the Peace and Security Fellowships for African women will be delivered by CSDG and the ALC, which is an initiative of King's College London.

The ALC aims to build a new community of leaders generating cutting edge knowledge on peace, security and development. To this end, the ALC undertakes to do the following:

• Create an enabling environment for ideas that are grounded in African realities;
• Provide space for interaction with role models;
• Build capacity for independent thinking;
• Expand the knowledge base to develop transformational ideas that can be developed to create visions of change;
• Create opportunities to transfer knowledge to achieve multiplier effects for communities;
• Connect with processes nationally, regionally and globally, especially in the field of peace and security; and
• Build lasting partnerships that will maintain an African‐led vision of change.

The Fellowships bring together African women in the early stages of their careers to undertake a carefully designed training programme in conflict, security and development. This training is followed by an attachment to an African Regional Organisation or a Centre of Excellence to acquire practical experience in the field of peace and security. It is intended that this project will train African women to develop a better understanding of African peace and security issues, in order to increase their participation in conflict management processes and other areas of security concerns for Africans.

Purpose

The Peace and Security Fellowship Programme for African Women, is designed to expose young professional African women to the complexities of conflict, security and development. The exposure is to equip them for careers in this field by developing their expertise to generate African led ideas and processes of change for addressing challenges on the African continent. The Fellowships especially aim to ground this expertise on peace and security in the pursuit of excellence and integrity.

The Fellowship is conceived against a number of background factors:

• First is the comparatively low number of African women exposed to rigorous academic writing and policy analysis in the field of peace and security especially as compared with those involved in human rights and development issues.
• Second is the need to assist African women to meet the demands of the Beijing process and the subsequent UN Security Council Resolution 1325 that calls for the inclusion of women at all decision making levels in “all national regional and international institutions and mechanisms for the prevention, management and resolution of conflicts”.
• This Fellowship is aimed at challenging the existing tendency that seems to reinforce the male dominant discourse on conflict and security related matters.
• The Fellowship is designed to develop the network of African women scholars working in the field whilst linking them with the peace and security mechanisms of relevant institutions.

Eligibility

Applicants should:

• Be female citizens of an African country, with valid travel documents.
• Have knowledge of, or experience of women's rights, gender and development issues.
• Must be able to demonstrate a commitment to contribute to work on peace and security in Africa
• Demonstrate commitment to the core values of the programme and the ALC: Independent thinking; Integrity; Pursuit of Excellence; and a Value for all forms of Diversity
• Must have a relevant organisational base and be endorsed by an organisation with which they have
• been involved for at least two years. Exceptional candidates without such organisational ties will be given special consideration
• Have a demonstrable plan for how to utilise knowledge gained in the Fellowship upon return to their countries and organisations
• Hold a Master's degree or Bachelors with an equivalent level of professional experience.
• Must be fluent in spoken and written English

Programme Delivery

This is a one‐year Fellowship, divided into two 6‐month phases. The first phase will be delivered at the ALC, Nairobi and King's College London. Particular aspects of the programme will be delivered at King's College London in London. These include orientation, institutional visits and simulation seminars. The core of the training will be delivered at the ALC in Nairobi and will be led by CSDG and ALC Senior Fellows and designated mentors for the programme consisting of renowned international experts in the field of peace, security and development.

During the training, the Fellows will be encouraged to engage critically with the discourse on conflict security and development in Africa. They will also visit and study institutions working in the field of peace and security in Africa and Europe. This phase will end with a simulation seminar series during which mock conflict management situations will be practiced. In the second phase, Fellows will be attached to an African regional organisation or Centre of Excellence to undertake practical work in the field of peace and security including peace and conflict management processes.

Terms of the Fellowship

Successful Fellows will have the status of full time students on the post‐graduate non‐degree programme at King's College London and the Africa Leadership Centre, Nairobi.

1. Student Visas: The offer of the Fellowship is subject to successful candidates obtaining visas to cover the 6‐month duration of the first phase of the Fellowship in the UK and Kenya. Failure to obtain a visa to enter the UK and Kenya automatically invalidates the offer of Fellowship with no consequences to the Fellowship Programme. The immigration rules for the UK can be accessed on the King's College London web page for obtaining student visas: www.kcl.ac.uk/international/prospective/prearrival/visas.html Please contact the Kenyan Embassy/ High Commission in your home country for the relevant procedures to obtain a Kenyan student visa for the entire Fellowship period of one year.
2. Expectant/Nursing mothers: Given the intense nature of the programme including its short phases in different locations as well as necessary extensive travel, successful applicants that are expectant or nursing mothers will be advised to defer their admission to the programme.
3. Medical Exam: Successful applicants will be required to undergo medical examinations at recommended venues prior to taking up their positions.
4. Programme completion/Return to base: The programme will last a total of 12 months, and Fellows will be expected to make full time commitment to the programme for its duration. It is a condition of the programme that successful candidates should return to their base or home countries at the end of the programme.

Please, note that any deviation from the Fellowship, except as may be authorised by King's College London, shall affect a Fellow's immigration status. Please consult the British Embassy/High Commission and Kenyan Embassy/High Commission in your home country for more information.

The Conflict, Security and Development Group reserves the right to terminate the appointment in the event of any breach of the conditions of the Fellowship.

Funding

This is a fully‐funded* opportunity, and funds will be made available to the Fellows to cover tuition, subsistence in the U.K. and Africa, and all travel expenses related to the programme in both phases. While funding will be made available to pay for accommodation, successful applicants are expected to find their own accommodation both in the U.K. and Africa. Fellows are strongly advised to make all necessary accommodation arrangements prior to taking up their positions on the Fellowship Programme.

Application

To be considered for the Fellowship please e‐mail to csdg@kcl.ac.uk

• A letter of application detailing your relevant experience
• A supporting statement detailing why you think that this Fellowship is important and future plans for engagement with peace and security issues no longer than 2,000 words
• 2 letters of recommendation (To be received directly from the Referees by the deadline of 17:00 hrs, Wednesday 31 March, 2010)
• A recent Curriculum Vitae
• Two samples of your written work (maximum 5,000 words) with a one page abstract

Please ensure all documents are sent in as MS Word attachments in a single email message (separate emails for the same application will not be accepted) or as a single post package and that your name is indicated at the top right hand corner of every page of all documents submitted.

This project is supported by a range of funders including private individuals and the Foundation Open Society Institute. It is subject to continued funding support from all funders.