The United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Prize for Women’s and Girls’ Education 2023 accepts applications. The UNESCO Prize for Women’s and Girls’ Education recognizes significant and innovative contributions to girls and women’s education made by individuals, institutions, and organizations. It is the first UNESCO Prize of this kind, and it is unique in that it highlights successful projects that improve and promote girls’ and women’s educational prospects and thus their quality of life. The Prize is awarded annually to 2 laureates and is funded by the Government of the People’s Republic of China.

Organized by: United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
Funded by: Government of the People’s Republic of China
Nomination Deadline: May 19, 2023

Prize:

• Each winner will receive a $50,000 prize to help them continue their work in girls’ and women’s education.

Who can be nominated?

• Individuals, institutions, or organizations promoting girls’ and women’s education are eligible to be nominated.
• Nominations must be based on a candidate’s established project or program that has been in operation for at least two years and meets the selection criteria.

Selection Criteria:

Nominations will be considered only if the project or program:

• Has a strong focus on improving girls’ and women’s education, as well as gender equality in and through education, and contributes to one or more of the Prize’s five priority areas:
• 1. Participation: Assisting girls in making the transition from primary to secondary school and completing their basic education.
• 2. Literacy: Assisting adolescent girls and young women in learning to read and write
• 3. Teachers: Enlisting teachers to be change agents with gender-responsive teaching attitudes and practices by supporting the creation of a gender-responsive and safe teaching-learning environment.
• 5. Skills: Assisting girls and women in gaining life and work-related knowledge and skills.
• At the time of nomination, it has already been running for at least two years (for example, a project nominated in 2022 must have been active since May 2020)
• Demonstrates that it is potentially replicable, scalable, and/or has significant learning potential for initiatives in other contexts.

Who can nominate?

• UNESCO Member States’ governments, through their Permanent Delegations to UNESCO, and Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) in official partnership with UNESCO, can submit up to three nominations.
• No self-nominations are permitted.

How to submit a nomination for UNESCO Prize for Women’s and Girls’ Education?

No self-nominations are permitted. Please contact your country’s National Commission to UNESCO or a relevant NGO in official partnership with UNESCO if you, your institution, or your organization meet the selection criteria.

• Nominations can be submitted in English or French via the dedicated online platform by the concerned Member State’s National Commission or Permanent Delegation to UNESCO or an NGO in official partnership with UNESCO. The Permanent Delegation must validate nominations submitted by a Member State’s National Commission. The organization’s headquarters must verify nominations from UNESCO-affiliated non-governmental organizations. Nominations from affiliated offices or country branches will not be accepted.
• National Commissions and Permanent Delegations to UNESCO can use their official UNESCO account to access the online submissions platform here. The Secretariat will provide direct access to the online platform to NGOs in official partnerships with UNESCO upon request. Please contact [email protected] to request access.
• The Member States and NGOs may request that candidates complete the online nomination form directly.
• The Prize Secretariat will grant candidates access to the platform upon request from the nominating entity (National Commission, Permanent Delegation, or NGO in official partnership with UNESCO). By May 19, 2023, requests should be sent to [email protected]. After the candidate has completed the online form, the nominating entity must review and validate the submission.

Nominate Now

For more information about UNESCO Prize for Women’s and Girls’ Education, please visit UNESCO’s website.

Similar opportunities you may like:

• IWMF Elizabeth Neuffer Fellowship for Female Journalists 2023
• World Bank Robert S. McNamara Fellowship Program (RSMFP) 2022
• 100 South Asia Excellence Scholarship by University of Newcastle Australia 2022
• UNESCO-Russia Mendeleev International Prize in the Basic Sciences 2022
• India Science and Research Fellowship (ISRF) by India’s Department of Science & Technology