Call for Applications: AU Digital and Innovation Fellowship Program 2024

The African Union Digital and Innovation Fellowship Program is a robust 12-month program which aims to identify and deploy highly competent tech innovators from the African continent to units and organs within the African Union headquarters as ‘resident fellows’ to understand the system within those units, identify data management challenges within the systems and solve the challenges identified by co-creating and building innovative tailor-made products and processes that improve data management processes and the overall work of the AU, while ensuring the sustainability of the developed products and processes post the fellowship timeline, by strengthening the internal capacity of the AU staff within those units.

About African Union

The African Union (AU) is a continental body consisting of the 55 member states that make up the countries of the African Continent. It was officially launched in 2002 as a successor to the Organisation of African Unity (OAU, 1963-1999). The main objectives of the OAU were to rid the continent of the remaining vestiges of colonisation and apartheid; to promote unity and solidarity amongst African States; to coordinate and intensify cooperation for development; to safeguard the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Member States and to promote international cooperation... read more... continue reading

AU Digital and Innovation Fellowship Program

Aim and Benefits of AU Digital and Innovation Fellowship Program

• Participate in several capacity building training that will be facilitated by top experts from the African innovation ecosystem.
• Receive mentorship support from experienced industry experts drawn from the AfriLabs community.
• Network and benefit from several peer-to-peer learning opportunities.
• Receive monthly stipends throughout the period of the Fellowship.
• Embark on several all-expense-paid trips to ecosystem events, onboarding/offboarding, study/learning tour, etc.
• Attend a grand graduation ceremony where certificates will be awarded to fellows.
• Be recognized as a fellow/alumni of the African Union Digital and Innovation Fellowship Program.

Requirements for AU Digital and Innovation Fellowship Program Qualification

• Be based in Africa and must be a National of an African Union member state.
• Be under the age of 34 prior to the time of application.
• Hold a tertiary education degree or its equivalent.
• Have the capacity to gather comprehensive information on complex problems or situations, and the ability to evaluate and analyze information accurately in order to identify key issues and proffer solutions.
• Have experience and technical know-how in designing innovative technology products/solutions.
• Be available to travel to participate in an induction workshop.
• Be available and willing to dedicate 12 months. Fellows will be required to take a break from current obligations and relocate to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
• Applicants who speak more than one AU official language (Arabic, English, French, Portuguese, Spanish and Swahili) are strongly advised to apply.

Interview date, Process and Venue for AU Digital and Innovation Fellowship Program

Capacity Building Training

• Induction Workshop: During the duration of the Fellowship, The fellows will be supported through several capacity building training beginning from an Induction Workshop.
• Virtual Pre-deployment Workshop: Before fellows are deployed to the AU departments/organs in Addis Ababa, the fellows will participate in a virtual pre-deployment workshop that will be delivered by experienced tech fellowship experts.
• Needs-based Capacity Building Training: The fellows will receive a needs-based capacity building training which will be developed to tackle the fellows needs areas that will be identified through a needs assessment of the fellows. The training will be delivered by experienced trainers drawn from the AfriLabs network.

Learning Tour

The fellows will be taken on a learning tour at a top tech organization with experience and technical expertise in supporting brilliant tech innovators to develop technologies and innovations that solve specific challenges in government and organizational administration processes.

Application Deadline

How to Apply

For more details,visit African Union website