Enroll now for 2016 Tana forum university Annual essay competition for African students

Are you, an African youth concerned about peace and security on the continent? Do you believe your future is, in any way, affected by current peace and security challenges on the African continent? Would you want your voice to be heard on this issue? Do you have a passion for writing?

Then, you should participate in the second edition of the ‘Tana Forum University Essay Competition’, organised by the Tana Forum Secretariat based at the Institute for Peace and Security Studies (IPSS), Addis Ababa University,
Ethiopia.

Application Deadline: 11:59 pm EST on Tuesday 31st January 2017.

Eligible Countries: African countries

To be taken at (country): Ethiopia

About the Award: The Tana Forum 2017 theme, “Natural Resource Governance in Africa” is intended to stimulate a debate on the reasons why Africa’s security challenges are attracting substantial global attention whereas the continent’s own experience and articulation of its issues has yet to obtain commensurate global recognition, acceptance and significance. It is evident today – more than any time in the past – that Africa needs to rally a unified and amplified voice and agency if it is to assert its own interests in international security debates and agendas.  The 2017 Tana Forum Essay Competition forms part of this consultative debate that is envisioned to contribute to policy building and development.

Africa is the arena for some of modern world’s intractable security challenges. Eighty years ago, when powerful nations breached multilateral decision-making and international law, Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia stood before the League of Nations and declared the imminent catastrophe facing the world, should the principles of common security be abandoned. Since then, Africa has not only been the testing ground of international peace and security, but its governments and institutions have been the champion and custodian of common security.

Type: Contest

Eligibility: 

• Applicants must be an African residing in an African country;
• Applicants must be Master’s or PhD students from the Social Science/Humanities/Political Science/ International Relations field in one of the under-listed universities

Selection Criteria:

1. Entries must be typed, double-spaced, in 12-point Times New Roman or an equivalent font with a one-inch margin on all sides of the page;
2. Essays must be between 5-10 pages in length;
3. Submissions must be the original work of applicants with a comprehensive list of sources consulted. Essays on other topics will not be accepted. Please use the topic as the title of your essay;
4. Submissions should be either in English or French;
5. A bibliography must be included. AT LEAST three of the sources you cite must be primary sources, i.e. books, periodicals or newspapers that you have researched. (A primary source is a document, speech, or other sort of evidence written, created or otherwise produced during the time under study. Primary sources offer an inside view of a particular event. They may be accessed online.) Other sources may be online, provided they are cited correctly as such. Any submissions lacking three primary sources will be disqualified.
6.  Any essay using crowd-sourced and publicly editable sources such as Wikipedia will be disqualified! Please make sure to also separate your primary source list from your Internet source list.
7. Essays MUST be submitted in Microsoft Word (.doc or .docx) format and any essay. submitted in any other format will not be considered.
8. Your essay will be disqualified if it does not meet the requirements or is submitted after the submission date of 11:59 pm EST on Tuesday 31 January, 2017.
9. Applicants must be willing and fit to travel.

Number of Awardees: 3

Value of Scholarship: The authors of the top three essays will be flown to the host city of the 2017 Tana High Level Forum, Bahir Dar, Ethiopia (April 22-23), during which the best writer will be invited to make an oral presentation of her/his essay to all the participants at the Forum including African Heads of States and other African dignitaries and officials from international organisations.

How to Apply: Email your essay with your name, age, university, academic degree (MA, PhD.), country of origin, and contact information (email address, telephone number) to: Lettie Longwe (l.longwe@ipss-addis.org) and copy Beza Degefa (beza.d@ipss-addis.org).

Visit Contest Webpage for details

Award Provider: Tana Forum Foundation