Cross-posted from: http://mediaopps.me/2011/12/19/mena-scholarship-program-2012/

The Middle East and North Africa Scholarship Programme (MENA Scholarship Programme) is initiated and fully funded by the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The MENA Scholarship Programme was set up in 2007 as a result of the growing interest in both the Arab world and the Netherlands to strengthen mutual ties in the areas of education, culture and trade.

In light of the current situation in Syria, the Dutch government has decided to suspend all aid programmes in Syria with regard to governmental institutions, in line with the decision of the EU. Therefore, MENA Scholarship Programme applications from Syrian applicants working for governmental organisations, public universities and semi-public organisations will no longer be considered.

The programme enables mid-career professionals to do a short course in the Netherlands. Each year there are around 120 scholarships available, which are proportionally distributed among the participating countries. Ideally, half of the scholarships are allocated to female applicants.

Aim

The MENA Scholarship Programme aims to contribute to capacity building within a wide range of governmental, non-governmental and private organisations and institutions in seven selected countries:

• Algeria
• Iraq
• Lebanon
• Morocco
• Oman
• Syria
• Tunisia

Moreover, the growing MENA alumni network will make a positive contribution to the relations between the Netherlands and your country.

Target group

The MENA Scholarship Programme’s target group are mid-career professionals who are employed by organisations or institutions operating in one of the following fields of study:

• Water management
• Business administration and management
• Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries
• Geographical Information Science

You must be a national of and working in one of the selected countries. While the scholarships is awarded to you, the need for training must be demonstrated in the context of the organisation you work for.

The scholarship

MENA scholarships can be used for a number of selected short courses offered by educational institutions in the Netherlands. The institutions provide professional training at post-secondary level in several fields of study. The list of selected short courses can be found in the MENA brochure. Please note that all dates mentioned in the brochure are mentioned as MM/dd/YYYY (e.g. 3/1/2012 is 1 March 2012).

A MENA scholarship is a contribution to the costs of the selected short course and is intended to supplement the salary that the scholarship holder must continue to receive during the study period.

The scholoarship covers:

• subsistence allowance
• international travel costs
• visa costs
• course fee
• medical insurance
• allowance for study materials

The allowances are considered to be sufficient to cover your living expenses during the study period. You must cover any other costs from your own resources.

Duration

The programme will run between January and December 2012. All courses will be conducted in 2012 and have a duration of between two and twelve weeks. There are two scholarship application deadlines:

• 1 March 2012
• 2 July 2012

P.S: The programme will run between January and December 2012. All courses will be conducted in 2012 and have a duration of between two and twelve weeks.