18th Senior Fellowship Officers Meeting, UNESCO Paris, November 2-4 2010

The 18th Meeting of the Senior Fellowships Officers of the United Nations System coordinated and organized by the Department of Economics and Social Affairs, Capacity Development Office (UN/DESA), was held at the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in Paris, France, from 2 to 4 November 2010.

The Meeting addressed how to further refine the impact assessment of UN System Fellowship Programmes. Several participants delivered presentations outlining impact assessment studies that had been conducted in their organizations. Following the previous meeting’s recommendation, a Contribution Analysis had been predominately adopted and was found to be a successful means of assessment. The Meeting recommended that the Contribution Analysis approach be expanded, in order to further assess its validity and applicability to the UN System Fellowships Programmes.

Innovations in the Fellowship world were also the topic of discussion and analysis. New IT tools had been developed since the last meeting, in order to facilitate online learning and better communication with fellows. It was concluded that the development of such IT tools was beneficial for the Fellowships Programmes. Further sharing of the development of IT tools was recommended, to foster a common approach between the programmes, and to improve the overall effectiveness of the programmes.

The Meeting also facilitated an exchange of ideas and analysis of some of the administrative aspects of the Fellowships Programmes. It was recommended that several steps be taken by the Senior Fellowships Officers to ensure that the Handbook be endorsed by the Chief Executives Board. It was further recommended that UN/DESA continue its interagency fellowship coordination role and to organize the 19th Meeting in 2012.

Please download the report to read an in-depth account of the Meeting. Included in the Report are the Meeting Recommendations and the Meeting Agenda.
18th Senior Fellowships Officers Meeting Report