A paid year in the top office of an African bank or a UN body

This guide is for a Nigerian under 40 (under 45 if you are a woman with children) who holds a master's degree and has at least seven years of relevant work (the foundation's words: "minimum 7 years' of relevant work experience"). A foundation that backs good leadership in Africa (the Mo Ibrahim Foundation) pays three Africans every year to spend twelve months working in the office of the head of one of three bodies: an African development bank in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire (the African Development Bank); a body in Geneva, Switzerland, that helps small businesses trade and recruits through the UN (the International Trade Centre, ITC); and the UN's economic body for Africa in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia (the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, ECA). The foundation puts the year's stipend at US$100,000, about ₦133.3 million. You apply yourself, online, on the host's own form. Nobody nominates you, nobody charges you, and you need no employer abroad. One host is stricter than the rest: the bank bars "Government officials, active military personnel and political party leaders", its own staff and their close family, so if you hold a government post, the ITC in Geneva is the form for you (Part 1, Two sets of rules).

It is a working year, not a school place. The foundation's own word for it is a fellowship, and the people picked are called fellows. This guide takes you from the CV you hold today to your first month on the job: what to do, where, what it costs, how long, and what comes next. Updated on 3 November 2026.

The bank's four priorities, what to send and where to apply

These are the three things to have in front of you before you write a line.

1. The bank's four priorities

The African Development Bank says plainly what it is looking for in its 2027 fellow. Its posting: "The priority for the selection of the 2027 Mo Ibrahim Fellow is the Bank's Four Cardinal Points". In plain words, these are the four things the bank's choice of its 2027 fellow gives priority to:

1. Raising money on a large scale to pay for Africa's development (the bank's words: "Mobilizing resources on a large scale to finance Africa's development").
2. Changing how money flows into and around Africa (the bank's words: "Reforming Africa's financial architecture").
3. Turning Africa's young population into growth (the bank's words: "Harnessing the demographic dividend to drive economic growth").
4. Building roads, power and other works that stand up to climate change, and processing more of Africa's natural resources at home (the bank's words: "Building climate-resilient infrastructure and robust value addition to natural resources").

The bank adds what it wants in the person: "The key competences are top notch professional experience in private sector and strong analytical skills in development policy and strategy and ability to run development models."

What you do with them tonight. Take four sheets of paper, one priority at the top of each. Under each, write what you have run, built, raised or changed in your own work that touches it, with a number beside each line: the money raised, the people served, the policy changed, the project delivered, the team you led. The priorities with the most under them are the spine of your CV and of your letters (Stage 2).

The other two hosts set their own focus. The ITC's fellow works on "strategic assignments related to trade development including private sector issues and specific challenges of small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs)" and on "strategies for effective Public- Private-Partnerships (PPPs) and generation of resources". The ECA's focus for 2027: we cannot tell yet.

2. What to send

To the bank (Abidjan). The posting: "Applications will only be considered if they are submitted on line with a comprehensive Curriculum Vitae (CV) indicating date of birth, nationality, education and relevant experience." And: "Applicants must also attach copies of academic transcripts and three letters of recommendation." So:

• Your CV, with your date of birth, your nationality, your education and your work that touches the bank's business written on it. A CV without the date of birth and the nationality is not considered.
• Copies of your transcripts, for your degrees.
• Three letters of recommendation. The posting: you "must also attach" them.
• A short cover letter, in the form's text box: the bank's form takes "a cover letter and any supplementary information ... not exceeding 4,000 characters".
• A copy of your passport or national ID: the posting asks you to "upload supporting Government issued IDs such as passport, National Identity Card or Certificate etc." and to declare one nationality.

To the ITC (Geneva). The ITC's form asks for no letters and no transcripts: you type your profile, and it checks your referees only if you are shortlisted. It applies through the UN's recruitment system (Inspira), where you fill a full profile of your education and your work and answer the posting's questions: "Applicants must provide complete and accurate information pertaining to their personal profile and qualifications according to the instructions provided in Inspira". What it asks of you: "Master's degree in economics, business, international development, international relations or related area is required"; "Minimum seven years of relevant work experience is required"; "For this job opening, English is required." Its referees are checked later: "Candidates under serious consideration for selection will be subject to reference checks".

To the ECA (Addis Ababa). The ECA's 2027 papers: we cannot tell yet.

How the bank's form takes your files. The bank's form page says of the CV: "You can only attach one single file; the maximum file size is 4mb." It also lists "Attach a resume or other file(s) to an application" among what the form lets you do. How many upload boxes the form shows, and where the letters and transcripts go: we cannot tell yet. So prepare both: each paper as its own PDF, and the same papers merged into one PDF under 4 MB in this order: CV, transcripts, the three letters, your ID. Use whichever the form asks for.

3. Where to apply

• The bank: its posting, 2027 Mo Ibrahim Foundation Leadership Fellowship Program, opens in a new tab. Scroll to "2- External Candidate", the part for anyone "not currently working at the African Development Bank", and press the "Apply for this position" button under it. It opens the bank's recruitment site. Closes 20 November 2026. If the form gives you a technical problem, the bank asks you to "send an email with a precise description of the issue and/or a screenshot showing the problem to" HRDirect@AFDB.ORG.
• The ITC: its posting on the UN's careers site, Mo Ibrahim Fellowship Opportunity, OED/Cabinet, P4, opens in a new tab, with its "Apply" button into Inspira. It closes at 11:59 pm New York time on 20 November 2026, which is 5:59 am in Lagos on Saturday 21 November.
• The ECA, and all three hosts, from the foundation: The Ibrahim Leadership Fellowships, opens in a new tab, "2027 Fellowships", with each host's link.

Apply only on these pages. The bank: it "does not ask for payments of any kind from applicants throughout the recruitment process". The ITC: it "does NOT charge any fees or request money from candidates at any stage of the recruitment process".

Where the call stands today

On 3 November 2026 the 2027 call is open, and it closes on 20 November 2026. The bank's and the ITC's forms are open today; the ECA's own form: we cannot tell yet. The foundation: "The application process for the 2027 Fellowships is now open ... Deadline: 20 November 2026." It opened on 21 September 2026, the posting date the bank and the ITC both print, and the foundation announced it on 22 September 2026.

Why 19 November and not 20. The bank's form cannot be saved and finished later: "you are not able to save your application as a draft and return to it at a later stage." A power cut or a network failure on the last evening costs you the year. Send on the 19th, and use the 20th only if something went wrong.

How many days are left. On 3 November 2026, 16 days to Thursday 19 November.

From the close to the answer. No page gives the date the 2027 fellows will be told. The foundation announced the last three intakes on 13 June 2024, 27 August 2025 and 30 April 2026. The ITC's fellowship is "for a period of one year only from June 2027". The bank's page prints no start date: the bank's start date: we cannot tell yet.

From today: what you can still finish

Find the row for the days left to 19 November, and the column for what you already hold. The slow part you do not control is the three letters: your referees write them, on their own time. The part in your hands is the CV, the cover letter and the four priorities.

Which host is quicker to finish. The bank's form takes "a maximum of 20 minutes" once your files are ready, in one sitting. The ITC's Inspira asks a full profile first; give it an evening.

Part 1. Before you start

What this is

A year of work at the top of a body that shapes Africa's money, trade or economic policy, paid for by the foundation. The foundation: "Each year three Fellows have an opportunity to work in the executive offices of the AfDB (Abidjan), ECA (Addis Ababa) or the ITC (Geneva), with a stipend of $100,000." "During their 12-month programmes, Fellows gain both technical and leadership skills, while contributing directly to research and policy design. A special feature of the programme is the opportunity to benefit from the direct mentorship of the heads of the host organisations."

What you do there. At the bank: you "take leadership guidance from the President, the Managing Directors, the Chief of Staff and Director of Cabinet", and you "prepare briefs, memos and other documentation that convey in non-technical terms the likely impact", "Participate in high-level discussions and contribute to the preparation of the President's meetings and missions", and "Undertake research and analysis of existing and emerging strategy, program and policy areas relevant for the Bank". At the ITC: the fellowship "offers a mentorship experience with the Executive Director and Deputy Executive Director of ITC", and you work "Under the supervision and guidance of the Chief Advisor to the Executive Director" on trade, small businesses and partnerships, and "Participate in high-level discussions and preparation of applicable briefing notes".

What you are paid. The foundation puts the stipend at "$100,000" for the year, about ₦133.3 million. At the bank: "The fellow will receive an annual stipend monthly paid by the Bank out of the funds provided by Foundation." The bank's page prints no amount of its own, and no page prints the monthly figure. At the ITC: "The monthly stipend rates are sufficient only to cover the normal living expenses of one person".

What you pay. Nothing to apply, at either host (the no-fee lines above). After an award, your passport if it is too short, a yellow fever card for Abidjan, and the Swiss visa for Geneva (Part 7). No host's page mentions housing; plan to pay your rent from your stipend unless your contract says otherwise (Stage 6).

What it is not.

• Not a scholarship. The foundation runs a separate programme for study, under its own heading on the same page: "The Ibrahim Scholarships support aspiring African leaders at a number of distinguished academic institutions." This guide is about the working year.
• Not a staff job. The bank: "The Fellow is not a regular employee of the Bank or is not granted a right to employment with the Bank." The ITC: "this fellowship position is not a staff appointment." The bank's contract is "for a period of one (1) year and is not renewable".

The bodies you will deal with

• The foundation (the Mo Ibrahim Foundation). It pays for the year and reviews the bank's shortlist. It runs no form of its own: "Visit the host organisation website in the links below for details and to apply."
• The bank (the African Development Bank, AfDB). A development bank owned by African and other countries, with its headquarters in Abidjan. Nigeria is one of its members: its member page lists "Nigeria" under "Regional member countries". Its human resources department reads the files.
• The ITC (the International Trade Centre). A body in Geneva that helps small businesses trade: its mandate, in its posting's words, "ITC enables small businesses to reach their potential". It recruits through the UN's careers site and the UN's system, Inspira.
• The ECA (the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa). The UN's economic body for Africa, in Addis Ababa.
• After an award, for Geneva: the Embassy of Switzerland in Abuja, which takes a Nigerian resident's long-stay visa, and the Swiss office in Geneva that gives people who work for international bodies their residence card (the Permanent Mission of Switzerland to the United Nations in Geneva).
• After an award, for Abidjan: the Ivorian border. A Nigerian passport needs no visa (Stage 8).

Two sets of rules, and the stricter one

Two bodies' rules apply to you: the foundation's list and the host's own. The foundation says so itself: its list ends with "any additional criteria as set by the host." So you meet both, and where they differ, the host's stricter line is the one you live under.

The foundation's list, for all three hosts: "National of an African country"; "minimum 7 years' of relevant work experience"; "Master's degree"; "under the age of 40; or 45 for women with children".

What the bank adds, and it is stricter:

• No government officials, soldiers or party leaders. The bank's criteria name all three, "Government officials, active military personnel and political party leaders", as people who cannot apply. The bank does not define "Government officials": if you work in a government ministry, department or agency, apply to the ITC instead. The ITC's posting prints no such bar, and the ITC's 2026 fellow, by the foundation's own announcement, "currently serves as Director Trade in the Government of the Kingdom of Lesotho".
• Your master's must be in the bank's fields: "banking, business, economics or other social sciences, finance, international development, or in any other discipline relevant to the Bank's business".
• Your seven years must touch the bank's work: "at least 7 (seven) years' work experience relevant to the Bank's activities".
• No bank staff, and no close family of bank staff: you must "Not be an active, non-active, retired, or separated staff member of the Bank" and "Not have close family relations with an active or non-active staff member, such as mother, father, sister and brother".
• One nationality: "the Bank does not accept dual nationality. Therefore, you are required to declare the nationality you would like to be considered by the Bank throughout your career, if hired."
• The age: "Age limit is forty (40) years for men and women and forty-five (45) years for women with children".

What the ITC adds:

• The age, counted on the day you apply: "Applicants must be under 40 years of age at time of application (women with children should be under 45 years of age)."
• The master's fields: "economics, business, international development, international relations or related area".
• English you can work in every day: the posting's table sets English at the UN's "Level III" in reading, writing, listening and speaking; "Either French or Spanish is desirable."
• A preference: "priority may be given to qualified African professionals who have not previously had experience with the International Trade Centre."
• A record: "Candidates who have committed crimes other than minor traffic offences may not be considered for employment."

Check that you can start

You are under 40, hold a master's in economics, finance, banking, business, international development, international relations or another social science, and have at least seven years of work relevant to the host's work (the bank: "at least 7 (seven) years' work experience relevant to the Bank's activities"; the ITC: "Minimum seven years of relevant work experience"). You can apply to the ITC, and to the bank unless the bank bars you. The bank bars five: "Government officials, active military personnel and political party leaders", anyone who is "an active, non-active, retired, or separated staff member of the Bank", and anyone with "close family relations with an active or non-active staff member".

You hold a government post. The bank bars "Government officials" and does not say who counts. If you work in a ministry, department or agency of government, treat yourself as barred at the bank and apply to the ITC, which prints no such bar.

You are a woman with children, aged 40 to 44. Both hosts take you: the bank's limit for you is 45, and the ITC's "should be under 45".

You turn 40 before 20 November 2026. The ITC counts your age "at time of application", so apply before your birthday. The bank prints the limit without a date to count it on; apply before your birthday there too.

Your master's is in engineering, medicine, law or another field. The bank takes "any other discipline relevant to the Bank's business"; the ITC takes a "related area". Your seven years decide it: write in your CV how your work touched the bank's four priorities or the ITC's trade work.

You hold a first degree only, or under seven years of work. This call is not for you yet. The call comes every year: "Fellowships are open annually". Start the closed plan (If the call has closed).

You hold two nationalities. At the bank you choose one and upload its ID. The ITC asks "African nationality".

Your father, mother, brother or sister works at the bank. You cannot apply to the bank. The ITC is open.

You have worked at the ITC before. You can apply; the ITC "may" give priority to people who have not.

Which host to choose

Choose the host whose work your record already does.

• The bank if your work is in finance, investment, energy, infrastructure, agriculture finance or economic policy, in the private sector above all ("top notch professional experience in private sector"). The bank's last two fellows, by the foundation's announcements, came from energy (2025) and impact finance and capital markets (2026).
• The ITC if your work is in trade, trade policy, small businesses, export, or partnerships between government and business. Its last three fellows, by the foundation, came from law and international trade (2024), digital trade (2025) and trade policy in government (2026).
• The ECA. Its 2026 fellow, by the foundation, is "an international development economist specialising in economic policy research". The ECA's 2027 papers: we cannot tell yet. The bank and the ITC are the two forms you can fill today.

Can you apply to more than one? Each host runs its own form, and no host's page says an application to one bars an application to another. If your record fits two, send two, each written to that host's work.

Nigerians have walked this

The foundation's announcement of 30 April 2026: "Since 2012, 43 Fellows (including this year's cohort) from across Africa have participated in the programme." Its fellow profiles name six Nigerians among them ("Country: Nigeria"), picked at all three hosts: at the ECA in 2012, 2016 and 2023, at the bank in 2014 and 2023, and at the ITC in 2014. Its release of 13 June 2024 names one more, "from Nigeria", a Nigerian woman, "a legal professional with demonstrated experience in international trade and development", picked for the ITC.

Part 2. The whole journey on one page

Stage 1. Read the call and the four priorities. Today. Free.

Stage 2. Ask three referees, and get your transcripts. This week. Free to ask; your university's transcript fee if you need a fresh copy.

Stage 3. Rewrite your CV and your cover letter. Over a week of evenings. Free.

Stage 4. Apply on the host's own form. By Thursday 19 November 2026. Free. The bank's form in one sitting of about 20 minutes; the ITC's Inspira profile over an evening.

Stage 5. The shortlist, the interview and the wait. The bank cuts to ten files, the foundation reviews them, three go to the bank's president. The ITC may set an exercise and an interview. Only people under consideration are contacted. On the last three years' record the picks were announced between April and August.

Stage 6. The award: your contract or letter of award. The bank signs a contract with you; the ITC sends a letter of award.

Stage 7. Your passport and your health card. A passport that lasts the year; a yellow fever card for Abidjan. ₦200,000 for a 10-year passport if yours is short.

Stage 8. The visa and the move. Abidjan: no visa for a Nigerian passport. Geneva: a Swiss long-stay visa from the embassy in Abuja, about 8 to 12 weeks, then a residence card in Geneva. At the bank, your flight there and home is paid from the foundation's funds; at the ITC, your fellowship agreement sets out what is paid.

Stage 9. Your first month on the job. You start work in the office of the head, and the stipend is paid monthly (at the bank).

Stage 10. The year, and after. Twelve months; then the foundation's network of past fellows. The bank does not hire a fellow as staff for a year after.

The money. Applying costs nothing. Before you travel: a passport if yours is too short (₦200,000 for 64 pages and 10 years), a yellow fever card for Abidjan, and for Geneva the Swiss visa fee. The stipend: US$100,000 for the year, about ₦133.3 million. Part 7 has every line.

The time. From today to 19 November, 16 days. The last three intakes were announced on 13 June 2024, 27 August 2025 and 30 April 2026. Then the move, and the year.

Part 3. Stage by stage

Stage 1. Read the call and the four priorities

Back to the short stages

You are reading this guide. Now read the host's own posting once from top to bottom, and do the four priorities exercise (the first part of this guide).

Why. The bank tells you what it is choosing on: "The priority for the selection of the 2027 Mo Ibrahim Fellow is the Bank's Four Cardinal Points".

Do.

1. Open the bank's posting, opens in a new tab and read "SELECTION CRITERIA" and "DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES". If you read French better, the bank prints it in French too: Programme de bourses 2027, opens in a new tab.
2. Open the ITC's posting, opens in a new tab and read "Responsibilities", "Education", "Work Experience" and "Special Notice".
3. Write your four sheets (the bank) or your three lines on trade, small businesses and partnerships (the ITC).
4. Choose your host (Part 1, Which host to choose).

Where. The two postings above, and the foundation's page, The Ibrahim Leadership Fellowships, opens in a new tab.

Cost. Free.

Time. One evening.

You are done when you have chosen your host and you have, under each of its priorities, at least one line of your own work with a number.

If nothing of yours touches the priorities. Read the ITC's work against your record as you did the bank's. If neither fits, this call is not your year: start the closed plan, and choose the work you take on next year with the priorities in mind.

Who was picked. The foundation's own announcements describe its 2024 to 2026 fellows with "nine years of experience", "over a decade", "more than 14 years" and "15 years", in the work the host does: at or above the seven-year floor, most of them well above it.

Next. Ask your referees (Stage 2).

Stage 2. Ask three referees, and get your transcripts

Back to the short stages

You have chosen your host. Now start the two things other people control: the letters and the transcripts.

Why. The bank says you must attach them: "Applicants must also attach copies of academic transcripts and three letters of recommendation." A referee needs days to write; ask today. The ITC asks for none on its form; it checks referees only for the people it is seriously considering, so tell yours a call may come.

Who to ask. Three people who have watched you lead: a manager, a senior colleague, a client or a partner who saw what you ran and what changed. Choose people who can name a result with a number. The bank's form also asks your references' "Names, occupation, relationship, addresses and email addresses", so have each one's full details.

The message to send (copy and change the blanks). "Good morning, ___. I am applying for the Mo Ibrahim Foundation's leadership fellowship, a year in the office of the president of the African Development Bank. The form closes on 20 November. You saw my work on ___. Could you write me a letter of recommendation on your letterhead, signed and dated, that says how I led it and what changed, with the figures you remember? Please send it to me as a PDF by ___ November, because I attach it to the form myself. I will send you my CV and the bank's advert today. Thank you."

Send your CV and the bank's posting with it, and the four priorities you wrote. A referee who knows what the bank wants writes to it.

Your transcripts. The bank asks for "copies of academic transcripts": your own copy serves; nothing on the page asks for an official transcript sent by your university. Get a copy of each degree's transcript from your university's transcript portal. The University of Lagos, for example, gives "access to the unofficial copy of the results transcript" on its student portal, and the University of Ibadan calls a copy sent to your own address a "Student's Copy". Your university prints its own fee on its portal; neither the University of Lagos nor the University of Ibadan prints a time, so start the day you decide.

Your passport or ID. The bank asks you to upload a government ID; scan your passport's photo page, or your national ID card, now.

Cost. Free to ask. Your university's transcript fee, as its portal prints it.

Time. Give referees a date three days before you mean to apply.

You are done when three referees have said yes with a date, and you hold a scan of each transcript and of your ID.

If a referee goes quiet. Ask a fourth person the same day. The bank asks for three; do not send two.

If your university is slow. Use the copy you already hold if it is complete and readable, and ask the portal for a fresh one at the same time.

Next. Your CV (Stage 3).

Stage 3. Rewrite your CV and your cover letter

Back to the short stages

You have asked for your letters. Now write the CV the bank will read in its first cut.

Why. The bank's human resources department reads every file first and keeps ten: "the Bank's Human Resources Department carrying out an initial vetting of applications to develop a short list of ten (10) applicant files". Your CV is what survives or does not survive that cut.

What the CV must carry, on the first page.

• Your full name, your date of birth and your nationality. The bank: "Applications will only be considered if they are submitted on line with a comprehensive Curriculum Vitae (CV) indicating date of birth, nationality, education and relevant experience."
• Your education: each degree, its school, its dates and your main subject. The bank's form asks "Name, type and address of up to two schools / universities attended", "Degrees obtained", "Dates of attendance", "Major area of concentration (for each degree)".
• Your work, newest first, each post with its dates and, for the bank's form, your earnings: the form asks "Employment dates ... and earnings."
• Under each post, three or four lines that each say what you ran, what you changed and the number, written to the bank's four priorities or the ITC's work. The bank looks for people who "Demonstrate proven leadership and consultative skills", "Have experience in strategic planning, project management and execution", "Have experience in formulating policy", "Demonstrate strong ability to analyze and interpret financial and other data", and can "motivate teams and simultaneously manage several projects".

What the CV file must be (the bank). "You can only attach one single file; the maximum file size is 4mb." "Your CV can be uploaded only in any of the following formats: DOC, DOCX, RTF, PDF, TXT, and HTML." "Do not protect it with any kind of password."

Your cover letter (the bank). The form gives "the text area for a cover letter ... not exceeding 4,000 characters". Write it in four short paragraphs: the priority your work touches most and the proof; the second priority and its proof; what you will do in the president's office with that experience; and who you are: Nigerian, your age, your master's and your years of work. 4,000 characters is about 600 words.

For the ITC. Inspira builds your profile from what you type in its own boxes: your education, each job, your languages. Type the same lines as your CV into each job's box; the ITC reads the profile, and "No amendment, addition, deletion, revision, or modification shall be made to applications that have been submitted."

Cost. Free.

Time. A week of evenings.

You are done when your CV is one file under 4 MB, carries your date of birth and nationality, and every post on it shows a result with a number; and your cover letter is under 4,000 characters.

What goes wrong. People write it like a scholarship essay: their hopes, their school grades, their motivation. The bank reads it as a job file. Repost pages online in 2025 and 2026 call this programme a fully funded scholarship; it is a year of work, and the file is read as one.

Next. Apply (Stage 4).

Stage 4. Apply on the host's own form

Back to the short stages

Your files are ready. Now apply, on the host's own page, by Thursday 19 November 2026.

At the bank

Where. The bank's posting, opens in a new tab, "Apply for this position", the button under "2- External Candidate". It opens the bank's recruitment site, where the posting shows "Apply now".

Before you open it. The bank's page on its form: "Please have the following information handy before you begin to fill out the online form as you are not able to save your application as a draft and return to it at a later stage". Have in front of you:

• your husband or wife's name and date of birth, and your children's names, relationship and dates of birth (the form asks for "Dependants");
• your two degrees: school, address, dates, degree, main subject;
• your jobs, with their dates (month and year) and your earnings;
• your three references' names, occupations, relationship to you, addresses and email addresses;
• your CV, your transcripts, your three letters and your ID, each as its own PDF and all merged into one PDF under 4 MB (What to send, How the bank's form takes your files).

Do. Fill it in one sitting. "It will take a maximum of 20 minutes to go through the application process online." "Your email address will be used as your login name allowing you to return to our website to update your profile". Press submit; "The system will automatically check for any missing mandatory data and take you to the respective field".

The deadline. The posting: "Applicants must apply online by no later than 20th November 2026." Send it by Thursday 19 November.

If the form fails. "In most cases, applying again later will resolve the problem." If it still fails, email HRDirect@AFDB.ORG with "a precise description of the issue and/or a screenshot", and the vacancy reference: the posting's "Position Number: 50100504". "Do not send your application or CV to this email address as it will not be considered."

At the ITC

Where. The ITC's posting, opens in a new tab, then "Apply", which opens Inspira, the UN's recruitment system. If it asks you to sign in and you have never used it, create your account with your own email first.

Do. Fill every part of the profile (your education, every job, your languages), then answer the posting's questions and submit. The posting's own words: "Applicants are urged to carefully follow all instructions available in the online recruitment platform, Inspira", and the "Manual for the Applicant" sits under "Manuals" on your Inspira home page.

Check before you press submit. Nothing can be changed after: "No amendment, addition, deletion, revision, or modification shall be made to applications that have been submitted."

If you have a disability that stops you using the form: "please send an email to hrs-jobs@intracen.org."

The deadline. 5:59 am in Lagos on Saturday 21 November (11:59 pm New York time on 20 November). Send it by Thursday 19 November.

At the ECA

The ECA's form and papers: we cannot tell yet.

Cost. Free at every host.

You are done when the host's system shows your application as submitted. Keep a screenshot of the confirmation screen.

Next. The wait (Stage 5).

Stage 5. The shortlist, the interview and the wait

Back to the short stages

You have applied. Now the host reads, and only the people still in the running hear anything.

At the bank, in its own words. "The selection process will include the Bank's Human Resources Department carrying out an initial vetting of applications to develop a short list of ten (10) applicant files to be further reviewed by the Foundation. A short list of three (3) candidates will be presented to the President of the Bank (or his designate) for final selection." "Only applicants who fully meet the Bank's requirements and are considered for interview will be contacted."

At the ITC. "Evaluation of qualified candidates may include an assessment exercise which may be followed by competency-based interview." "Applicants will be contacted only if they are under serious consideration." Those under serious consideration "will be subject to reference checks": tell your referees a call or an email may come.

How long. No page gives a date for the answer. The foundation announced the last three intakes on 13 June 2024, 27 August 2025 and 30 April 2026.

Do.

• Answer every email from the host the same day.
• If you are invited to an interview, prepare three stories with numbers, one for each of your strongest priorities, and the answer to "what would you do in the president's office in your first three months".
• A competency interview asks you to describe what you did in a real situation: say what the situation was, what you did, and what changed.
• Keep your phone and your email open; check your spam folder.

You are done when a host writes to offer you the year, or the announcement names others.

If you hear nothing. Silence is the answer for files that were not shortlisted: both hosts say they contact only the people they consider. Start the closed plan for the next call.

What people who did it say. In 2025 a fellow at the ECA said online that her year ran from September 2024 to September 2025, after the foundation's June 2024 announcement.

Next. The award (Stage 6).

Stage 6. The award: your contract or letter of award

Back to the short stages

A host has picked you. Now read what you sign.

At the bank. "The Fellow will sign a contract with the Bank before commencement of service." While it runs you "comply with the Staff Regulations and Rules of the Bank", and "Only the Bank and not the Foundation shall be entitled to direct and instruct the Fellow". You do not join the bank's staff plans: "The Fellow shall not participate in the Bank's child educational scheme and staff medical insurance and retirement plans." The foundation covers them instead: "The Mo Ibrahim Foundation will ensure that the Fellow has his/her own medical insurance, child education and retirement plan arrangements."

At the ITC. "The selected Fellow will receive a Letter of Award before commencement of service." "Any entitlements are exclusively set out in this Fellowship Agreement, and with no participation in the United Nations Joint Staff Pension Fund." The year runs "from June 2027".

What to check in the papers before you sign.

• The start date (the bank's start: we cannot tell yet).
• The stipend, and the day of the month it is paid.
• Your flight there and home: at the bank, "The travel and shipping costs for the assumption of duty and repatriation at the end of the appointment will be borne and paid out of the Funds provided by the Foundation."
• At the ITC, "Any entitlements are exclusively set out in this Fellowship Agreement": read your flight and your insurance in it.
• Your housing: no host's page mentions it. Ask in writing who finds your first home, and the day your first stipend is paid, before you sign.
• At the bank, your medical insurance from the foundation.
• For Geneva: what the ITC will send the Swiss authorities for your visa and your residence card (Stage 8).

Your family. At the ITC: "ITC shall in no case be responsible for the family and dependents of fellows. ITC does not provide support for the families of fellows to obtain work/residential permits." "Fellows are recommended not to bring family members to the duty station." At the bank the page says nothing on a family's move; the foundation sees to "child education" arrangements. Your husband or wife and children travel to Abidjan on their own Nigerian passports, with no visa, each over 9 months old with a yellow card; their stay beyond 90 days is the same open question as yours (Stage 8).

You are done when you hold the signed contract (the bank) or the letter of award (the ITC), with the start date on it.

Next. Your passport and your health card (Stage 7), at once.

Stage 7. Your passport and your health card

Back to the short stages

You hold the award. Now make sure your passport and your health card are ready before any visa or flight.

Your passport. Renew it now if it ends before your year does. The Nigeria Immigration Service: "64 Pages 10-Year Validity is N200,000", "32 Pages 5- Years Validity is N100,000"; a renewal ("Re-issue") takes "21 days after Successful Enrolment", a first passport "42 days after Successful Enrolment". "Applicants are to visit: www.passport.gov.ng to apply". Take the 64-page, 10-year passport.

Your yellow fever card, for Abidjan. Where to get it in Nigeria and its fee: we cannot tell yet. The World Health Organization's country list: for Côte d'Ivoire, "a yellow fever vaccination certificate is required for travellers over 9 months of age." For Ethiopia, a certificate is required "for travellers over 1 year of age arriving from countries with risk of yellow fever transmission". For Switzerland, "Country requirement: no". Carry your yellow card in your hand luggage.

Cost. ₦200,000 for the 10-year passport, if you need one.

You are done when your passport runs well past the end of your year and your yellow card is with it.

Next. The visa and the move (Stage 8).

Stage 8. The visa and the move

Back to the short stages

To Abidjan (the bank)

No visa. The West African states' own rule, the ECOWAS free movement protocol: "A citizen of the Community visiting any Member State for a period not exceeding ninety (90) days shall enter the territory of that Member State through the official entry point free of visa requirements." Côte d'Ivoire's own list says the same: the Ivorian Ministry of Economy and Finance's visa sheet of November 2018 lists Nigeria among "Pays Membre de la CEDEAO" whose nationals "ne sont pas soumis à l'obligation de visa" (are not required to hold a visa).

Staying a year. The same protocol: a citizen "shall, however, be required to obtain permission for an extension of stay from the appropriate authority if after such entry that citizen has cause to stay for more than ninety (90) days." What that permission is in Côte d'Ivoire, which office gives it and what it costs: we cannot tell yet. The bank asks you to follow its rules for the year; when you sign, ask the bank's human resources in writing what it does for a fellow's stay beyond ninety days.

What you carry. Your passport, your yellow card and your signed contract. The bank pays your move there, and your trip home at the end of the year, from the foundation's funds (Stage 6).

Your flight. Paid from the foundation's funds (Stage 6).

To Geneva (the ITC)

A visa first, then a card. Switzerland's office for the international bodies in Geneva sets the order. Its guidelines (amended 18 December 2025): "Depending on their nationality, persons recruited abroad are subject to the visa requirement to take up employment"; "The visa must be request from the Swiss representation"; and "The Swiss Mission can only issue legitimation cards to persons who are in possession of a visa when they enter Switzerland." Nigeria is not on its list of countries whose nationals are exempt. The card, once in Geneva, "serves as a residence permit".

Where you apply for the visa. At the Embassy of Switzerland in Abuja, for a resident of Nigeria: "Embassy of Switzerland in Nigeria, 157, Adetokunbo Ademola Cr., Wuse II, Abuja 900288"; visa questions to abuja.visa@eda.admin.ch, by appointment. The embassy: "The application will be forwarded to the competent cantonal authorities in Switzerland for a decision." "The total processing time is approximately 8-12 weeks." So apply the week your letter of award comes: a June 2027 start means the file in by March 2027. If your letter comes later than that, write to the ITC the same day, tell it the embassy's 8 to 12 weeks, and ask whether your start date moves to match.

What the visa costs and what the embassy asks of a fellow. The national visa fee and the papers the Abuja embassy asks for a person going to work for an international body: we cannot tell yet. The embassy says "The fee for the visa is due at the time the application is submitted and is not refundable."

Which card. The guidelines give people who work for an international body without being its staff a type "H" card: consultants "provided that the duration of their contract is equal to at least three weeks", and interns "provided that they are hired for more than 90 days". They name no card for a fellow. When your letter of award comes, ask the ITC in writing which card it will request for you and what it sends the embassy for your visa.

Your family. For anyone who is not staff: "Family members of non-staff members are not issued a legitimation card and are not allowed to enter Switzerland on the grounds of family reunification." They cannot come to live with you as your family. With the ITC's own line (Stage 6), plan the Geneva year alone.

Rekoja's desk. If you want help with the visa file and the papers for Geneva, Rekoja's desk can prepare them with you, paid in naira, with the official fees passed through at cost. The desk does not touch your fellowship application: nobody should pay for help applying to a funded programme.

To Addis Ababa (the ECA)

The ECA's fellow's visa for Ethiopia: we cannot tell yet. Carry your yellow card (Stage 7).

You are done when your passport carries what your host country needs (nothing for Abidjan, the Swiss visa for Geneva) and your flight is booked.

Next. Your first month on the job (Stage 9).

Stage 9. Your first month on the job

Back to the short stages

You have landed. Now you start in the office of the head of the bank or the ITC.

What happens. At the bank you work "at the headquarters of the Bank in Abidjan", taking "leadership guidance from the President, the Managing Directors, the Chief of Staff and Director of Cabinet". At the ITC you work in "The Office of the Executive Director" under "the Chief Advisor to the Executive Director".

Your stipend. At the bank, "an annual stipend monthly paid by the Bank out of the funds provided by Foundation". The day of the month the first payment lands: we cannot tell yet. Arrive with money for your first month: rent, food and transport until the first payment.

Your first weeks. Ask in your first week for the head's priorities for the year and the work you will lead, and agree in writing what you will deliver by the end of your first three months.

Travel for the work. At the bank, "All expenses related to the Fellow's official mission travel, including travel insurance ... will be borne by the Bank."

You have arrived when you have worked your first month on the job and your first stipend is in your account.

Stage 10. The year, and after

Back to the short stages

The year. Twelve months. At the bank the contract "is for a period of one (1) year and is not renewable". At the ITC "for a period of one year only from June 2027".

After. "Fellows also become members of the Now Generation Network (NGN), through which they continue to contribute their skills and insights to building a better Africa." At the bank, a fellow cannot be recruited to the bank's staff "for a period of 1 (one) year from the date of termination of his/her Fellowship", and "there is no presumption of future employment at the Bank". Plan your next job from your sixth month.

Part 4. What can stop you

Your dates

What stops people, and what you do

A CV with no date of birth or nationality. The bank does not consider it. Put both on the first page.

Two letters instead of three. The bank asks three. Ask a fourth referee the day one goes quiet.

Writing it like a scholarship essay. It is a working year. Show what you ran, what you changed and the numbers.

Applying to the bank while holding a government post. The bank bars "Government officials" and does not say who counts. If you work in a ministry, department or agency, apply to the ITC.

Leaving it to 20 November. The bank's form cannot be saved as a draft, and the ITC's cannot be changed after you submit. Send on the 19th.

Applying through someone else's link, or paying anybody. Apply only on the bank's page and the UN's careers site. Neither host takes money at any stage; a request for money "allegedly made on behalf of ITC" is "fraudulent".

Planning to take your family to Geneva. The ITC recommends you do not, and Switzerland does not let the family of a person who is not staff come to live with them as family.

Part 5. If you already did some of this

You have read the priorities and chosen your host. Start at Stage 2 today: ask your referees.

Your referees have agreed. Start at Stage 3: the CV.

Your CV and letters are ready. Start at Stage 4 and apply today.

You have applied. Stage 5: keep your phone and email open, and tell your referees a call may come.

You applied last year and were not picked. Apply again, written to the bank's 2027 priorities, not last year's file. Add the year's work with its numbers.

You have been picked. Stage 6 for the papers, then Stage 7 for your passport the same week.

You hold your letter of award for Geneva. Stage 8: the Swiss visa application this week.

Part 6. The time, stage by stage

• Stage 1, the call and the priorities: one evening.
• Stage 2, referees and transcripts: ask today; letters by three days before you apply.
• Stage 3, the CV and the cover letter: a week of evenings.
• Stage 4, the form: the bank about 20 minutes in one sitting; the ITC an evening for the profile; by 19 November 2026.
• Stage 5, the wait: no page gives a date; the last three announcements came on 13 June 2024, 27 August 2025 and 30 April 2026.
• Stage 6, the award: the ITC's year starts June 2027; the bank's start date: we cannot tell yet.
• Stage 7, passport and health card: a renewal 21 days after enrolment.
• Stage 8, the visa: none for Abidjan; about 8 to 12 weeks for Geneva.
• Stage 9, the first month on the job.
• Stage 10, the year: twelve months.

Part 7. The money, all of it

If the call has closed

The call opens every year: "Fellowships are open annually to young professionals, mid-career and new executives from Africa with relevant work experience and a master's degree." This year's opened on 21 September 2026 and closes on 20 November 2026. When the 2028 call opens: we cannot tell yet.

What you do now, for the next call.

1. Keep your four sheets of the bank's priorities and add every result of the year with its number. The next call will print its own priorities; the 2027 ones show what the bank is choosing on now.
2. Take on the work that fills the thinnest sheet: lead a project, raise money, change a policy, and count it.
3. Keep three referees close, and tell them in September that you will ask.
4. Check your age against the next call's line before you start.
5. Renew your passport if it is short, so the award never waits for it.
6. From September, read the foundation's page, The Ibrahim Leadership Fellowships, opens in a new tab, for "Fellowships" of the new year.

The bank and the ITC say it in their own words: the bank "does not ask for payments of any kind from applicants throughout the recruitment process", and the ITC "does NOT charge any fees or request money from candidates at any stage of the recruitment process". You apply yourself, on the host's own page, and you pay nobody to be considered. Rekoja's desk does not prepare your fellowship application. After an award to Geneva, it can prepare your Swiss visa file and its papers with you (Stage 8).