OUR FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM
For quick navigation through our program use the following buttons
THE PROGRAM
Our fellowship program provides financial support, exposure to global discourse and developments in the policy landscape, and mentoring to people with disabilities from low- and middle-income countries who are actively working on issues of inclusive policy or policy research in support of the rights of people with disabilities as put forth in the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
We believe that successful advocacy and policy change hinge on the ability to gather and analyze all types of data – quantitative, qualitative, legislative, financial – to provide a strong evidence base for policy change and that it is of fundamental importance that people of disabilities from low and middle income countries be at the center of these efforts.
The official language of the program is English.
OUR OFFER
- Mentorship to develop the fellow’s work plan and achieve their deliverables
- Sponsorship for a week-long training on social protection policies or a similar training program
- A fellowship grant of US$ 900 / month to help cover the time they spend on their projects.
- Involvement of fellows in the projects of CIP as per their interests and expertise. This will enrich the fellows experience and will offer exposure to a global perspective.
- Additional time can be compensated based on the terms of the contract or grant under which it is carried out.
- Involvement of fellows in CIP meetings where fellows will have the opportunity to learn from other members of the organization and different country contexts.
- Check out the kind of projects our past and current fellows have been involved with below.
WHO
We are looking for persons with disabilities in the early or mid-stages of their careers, from the Global South, who have already begun undertaking research and policy analysis in disability inclusion, or who have worked as advocates or organizers but want to transition to more analytical work. It is highly preferred if these people already have connections with the disability rights movements in their countries.
This year, our particular focus is in two areas: inclusive social protection policies, and policies and programs aiming to create community support systems for independent living.
Please note that rather than looking for people who are engaged in training programs or service delivery, we are looking for people with a desire to engage in:
- legal research
- quantitative or qualitative research
- policy analysis
- budget analysis
NO LONGER ACCEPTING:
Fellowship Applications for 2023-2024 are now CLOSED
HOW TO APPLY
The call for applications closed at 5pm US Eastern time (GMT-5) on July 31, 2023. The fellowship will begin in September 2023 and end in August 2024. Applicants may submit ONE (1) application.
Short listed candidates will have to pass through an online interview. Reasonable accommodations based on the request from the candidate will be provided during the interview and through the fellowship period.
NOTE: Applications that do not contain all required elements will not be considered.
Submit CV, cover letter and the application form
Verification and selection
Online interview of short listed candidates
Start of fellowship
Meet our Current Fellows
Grace Kawala
Grace is a disability rights advocate from Kenya, a governance scholar & the disability inclusion intern at the African Leadership University. She is a YALI Alumni 2022 and the Disability inclusion assistant at the League of persons with special abilities – a local OPD.
During her fellowship, Grace is examining the cash transfer system in Kenya with a focus on its potential shift from household entitlements to individual benefits alongside an evaluation of the Social Assistance Act 2013.
Scader Louis
During her fellowship, Scader is working on analyzing the financing and expenditure patterns of social protection programs over the last five years and assess the risks associated with excessive reliance on donor funding for social protection programs and the long and short term impact on persons with disabilities in Malawi
Ayushmita Samal
2023-2024 Fellow
Ayushmita is an Indian researcher working on identifying the barriers faced by persons with invisible disabilities in obtaining a disability certificate and UDID.
She is skilled in qualitative and quantitative research, monitoring and evaluation, and policy analysis. She also works on sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) and the intersection of SRHR and disability is her passion.
She has authored a policy brief called, “Making a case for reasonable accommodation for persons with neurodivergence at the workplace”, a first in the Indian context, and is a part of Civic Asia’s working group of young queer neurodivergent individuals in South Asia.
Ayushmita works as the Research and Monitoring Lead at Project Baala, an Indian organisation working on SRHR. At Project Baala, Ayushmita is helping build an SRHR information delivery system for women and girls with disabilities in rural areas, in association with Accessable. This is a UNFPA funded project, and is targetted towards women and girls with little to no access to assistive technology and the internet.
Ayushmita is also one of the researchers sending the UNCRC shadow report on the status of children in India in 2024. For this report, she, along with her colleagues is focusing on the status of children of sex workers.
Ayushmita lives with multiple mental illnesses, and her lived experience is the basis and motivation behind her advocacy and work.
Past fellows
Don’t just take our word for it!
“I was involved in documenting and understanding the social protection programs for persons with disabilities globally.
As a part of the program I could support different DPOs in India in conceptualising and finalising various reports and activities of the organisation.
Overall it was a rich learning experience for me personally….”
Fellow // 2019-2020
” I participated in the discussion exploring the concept of standards for advisory services to ensure disability inclusion and accountability.
CIP supported me in developing the policy paper on disability support allowance which is now a proposed law in the Congress.
I facilitated the partnership of CIP with Persons with Disability Affairs Office of Batangas Province to implement the pilot Disability Data Management System which lead to additional support from UNPRD-ILO-UNICEF and UNESCAP.”
Fellow // 2019-2020
“ I participated in and undertook different activities like supporting the writing of a policy paper on support services, doing desk research and interviews on challenges in DPO participation, developing the content for an online on accessibility; being a regional researcher for research commissioned by WHO on the impact of COVID19 on support services. I also got an opportunity to participate at the Social Protection Week 2019 organised by the Asian Development Bank and attended a workshop on “Strengthening advocacy for social protection reforms that promote inclusion of persons with disabilities exchange and learning week.”
Fellow // 2019-2020
During her fellowship program, Esma was working on mapping of social protection system and evaluation of the inclusivity of the system. She was doing the comparative analysis of information obtained in Georgia to those on international practice regarding allocations. She was also supporting CIP work on cost of disability.
Fellow // 2021-2022
During her fellowship Alimata was working on reviewing the 3% District Assembly Common Fund allocated by the Government of Ghana for the use of persons with disabilities in order to reduce poverty among them. The aim was to evaluate the impact of the Fund in the lives of persons with disabilities as well as to gather information on the extra cost of disability and the types of support people need.
Fellow // 2021-2022