Rohingya refugees face appalling conditions in Bangladesh

Wimal Perera 

In contrast to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s propaganda about the “humanitarian treatment” given to Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh, they living in miserable conditions in make-shift camps.

Because of the deep-felt sympathy of the ordinary masses for the Burmese refugees, the Hasina government pretends it is looking after them well. However, it is seeking to push them back into Burma as soon as possible.

Rohingya people, an oppressed Muslim minority, have lived for generations in Burma’s northwestern Rakhine state. In 1982, the Burmese regime stripped away their citizenship rights.

More than 622,000 refugees have entered Bangladesh since the Burmese military stepped up its violent attacks in August, triggering a mass exodus from Rakhine state. An estimated 834,000 refugees are living in Bangladesh, including those who fled earlier.

Though the Bangladesh government tried to block the refugees by military means, it was later forced by sheer weight of numbers to allow the mass exodus. Refugees were tortured, women raped, houses torched and villages destroyed in what amounts to “ethnic cleansing” by the Burmese military and its associated gangs.

The refugees are crammed in unhealthy and unplanned squalid camps at Cox’s Bazar, 400 kilometers south of Dhaka and close to the border with Rakhine state. The refugees are short of clean water, sanitary facilities, health care and food.

Aid worker Kym Blechynden, speaking to the media on November 21, described the situation at one refugee camp, the Kutapalong camp located in Cox’s Bazar. “Steep hillsides are covered in makeshift homes closely packed together like a jigsaw and built with pride from bamboo and tarpaulins,” she said. “There is no space left untouched, as far as the eye can see.”

Blechynden said: “We see more than 150 patients a day in each clinic; malnourished children and adults, people suffering from dangerous diarrhoea and respiratory infections.”

The conditions inside the camp are appalling. There are no roads in the camps, only steep muddy tracts. With torrential rain, the situation becomes worse.

With thousands more people coming across the border, the situation will continue to deteriorate.

The overwhelming majority of refugees are women and children. One media report noted the plight of two small children less than two years of age, listless in their mother’s arms. Dying of thirst, they were revived by dropping water with sugar into their mouths. Many refugees are in this state.

Many children are traumatised by their experiences. Rabea, a six-year-old girl, said she was standing with her siblings when a soldier shot her father in the head. “Blood flowed from his ears, his body dropped lifeless to the ground… Her mother was shot soon after,” the Daily Star reported.

Rabea’s aunt, who cares her, said Rabea cries at night, and spends her days roaming through the camp, unable to understand what happened.

Child protection specialist Graner Marak with World Vision said: “With the horrors they have gone through, it is difficult to say if they can recover. Children have seen killings and atrocities and this will take time to process.”

Another doctor said most girls are “rape survivors.” He said his clinic treated 3,000 to 5,000 refugees daily, many of them children, for numerous diseases, including waterborne diseases like cholera and diarrhea.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), 62 percent of the water available to the refugees is contaminated with E. coli, an indicator for measuring faecal contamination. UNICEF (United Nations Children's Fund) spokesperson Christophe Boulierac said: “We are also concerned by an increase in cases of acute watery diarrhoea (AWD) which has included several deaths.” Between 25 August and 11 November, a total of 36,096 AWD cases were reported, including 10 related deaths. Reportedly, there is only one toilet per 327 refugees.

Malnutrition has developed to life-threatening levels. UNICEF and its partners screened a total of 59,604 children as of October 25. They identified 1,970 or 3.3 percent as “severely acutely malnourished” and 6,971 or 12 percent as “moderately acutely malnourished.”

One refugee leader told the UNHCR team: “When it rains, the rain comes down from the hills behind, and during the high tides, the water comes from that side.” He said the water often reached knee height, saturating their shelters.

To try to survive, refugees are engaged in work such as pulling rickshaws, fishing, making bricks or working in nearby salt fields.

On September 12, Prime Minister Hasina visited the Kutupalong refugee camp to put on a show of sympathy. She hugged refugees and lamented the deaths of women and children. Hasina told reporters: “We gave them shelter in our country on humanitarian grounds.”

Likewise, Bangladesh Foreign Minister A. H. Mahmood Ali accompanied a delegation of three foreign ministers from Germany, Sweden and Japan.

Meanwhile, Hasina’s government is biometrically registering all the refugees to monitor their movements. It is desperate to send back hundreds of thousands of people, despite the atrocities they face in Burma.

On November 23, Foreign Minister Mahmood Ali and Burmese minister U Kyaw Tint signed an agreement to repatriate Rohingya. It is based on a pact signed in 1992 to send back refugees who fled Burmese military violence.

According to the terms, Aung San Suu Kyi’s Burmese government will accept only those who can produce official identity papers. However, many of the refugees have no such documents because they escaped from the country while facing ruthless repression.

The refugees are refusing to return. Reuters reported one refugee, Salimullah, saying: “We will go back to our country if our demands are met. Our demands are that we are given citizenship. They also have to give us back our land.

The Bangladesh government is violating the basic rights of refugees. The international powers are equally two-faced in their pretences of concern. The European countries have violently blocked refugees who fled the wars in Syria and other Middle Eastern countries.

China invests billions in Eastern Europe, heightening tensions with Germany

Peter Schwarz

Chinese investments in Eastern Europe have met with strong criticism from the European Union. Germany in particular views the rapidly expanding Asian economic power as a rival rather than a partner.

The sixth summit of the so-called 16 plus 1 Cooperation took place in Budapest on Monday and Tuesday. It was attended by Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang and included some 1,000 businesspeople.

Li committed to providing $3 billion in investments and development projects for Eastern Europe. He signed 11 bilateral agreements with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban alone.

Founded in 2012, the 16 plus 1 Cooperation comprises China and the states of the former Soviet-dominated Eastern Bloc. Eleven of its participants are also members of the European Union, while five Balkan states are not.

China’s Cooperation with Eastern and Central European states (CEEC) is part of its New Silk Road strategy, also known as “One Belt, One Road” (OBOR), which includes major investments in transportation and economic projects along trade routes between China and Europe.

The most important project agreed at this week’s summit was the building of a new railway link from Budapest to the Serbian capital Belgrade. Eighty-five percent of the $2.1 billion project will be financed by China’s Exim Bank. It will link the Greek port of Piraeus, which is under majority control of the Chinese supplier Cosco, to the European rail network. Additional rail and road projects in the Balkans will also be financed by China.

Investment and trade between China and Eastern Europe has grown rapidly within the framework of the 16 plus 1 Cooperation. Total trade grew by 86 percent from 2009 to 2014, to $100 billion. The percentage of Chinese imports to the region rose from less than 2 percent to more than 6 percent. Hungary and the Czech Republic now import more goods from the Far East than they do from France, Italy or the Netherlands.

Current Chinese investments in the region total between $6 billion and $8 billion. The Washington-based CSIS think tank estimated that planned Chinese investments amount to $15 billion.

This remains, as before, a small percentage of the total. In Poland alone, total foreign direct investment is $200 billion, and EU budget transfers for the period 2014-2020 to the Visegrad states—Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary—total up to €150 billion.

The Chinese leadership constantly stresses that its engagement in Eastern Europe is not aimed at challenging the EU’s interests. At last year’s meeting of the 16 plus 1 Cooperation in the Latvian capital Riga, Li Keqiang stated that the Cooperation is aimed at strengthening peace and stability and developing cooperation between China and the EU. China has an interest in a united, prosperous and stable Europe, he added.

However, Brussels and Berlin see things differently. German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel warned this summer of a division of Europe by China. He described the silk road initiative as a major geopolitical, cultural, economic and ultimately military strategy with which the EU cannot at present compete.

Bernd Lange, chairman of the Trade Committee in the European Parliament, expressed a similar view. “China’s investments in Eastern Europe contain the danger of a deepening division of the EU,” the German Social Democratic Party politician warned. The fear is that China, with the many billions at its disposal, is “buying influence over European politics.”

In a comment titled “China tames Eastern Europe,” the Süddeutsche Zeitungnoted, “The issue at stake in the conflict with China is nothing less than Europe’s self-assertion.” The newspaper accused the Chinese government of exploiting the “weak spots and dividing lines in Europe” to secure a route into the EU “that does not lead through Brussels.” As in Asia, Africa and Latin America, China also intends in Europe to “satisfy its claim for global power by expanding economically.”

Following the restoration of capitalism, Eastern Europe served for some time as the backyard of Germany and other Western European powers. Corrupt regimes supported by the EU destroyed social services and the education system, while Western European companies exploited well educated workers at poverty wages that often amounted to less than a third of wages in the West.

Right-wing forces, by distancing themselves from Brussels, have exploited the sustained social decline to direct growing anger into nationalist channels. In Hungary, Poland and the Czech Republic, such parties are now in power. For Hungarian Prime Minister Orban, the state visit from China offered a welcome opportunity to demonstrate his independence from the EU. Berlin and Brussels reacted with outrage.

However, China’s advance into Eastern Europe is only one reason for growing tensions. The German government cooperated closely with China for some time, including by holding regular government consultations since 2011 so as to deepen collaboration. China is the most important sales market for Germany’s machinery and auto industries. Volkswagen, Germany’s largest auto concern, sells more vehicles in China than in Germany.

But Berlin’s attitude has changed since Chinese companies have caught up technologically and begun competing with German firms on the world market and purchasing German companies. While German direct investment in China was several times higher than Chinese investment in Germany in 2015, last year saw a sudden reversal of this trend.

Berlin reacted especially aggressively to the purchase of German hi-tech firms by Chinese companies. After a Chinese firm bought the robot and equipment manufacturer Kuka, the German government adopted a provision last summer enabling it to block similar takeovers in the future.

In the final analysis, the growing tensions between Beijing, Brussels and Berlin are a product of the intensification of trade war measures that have assumed new global dimensions with Washington’s adoption of Donald Trump’s “America First” policies. The imperialist powers, as they did a century ago, are responding to the global capitalist crisis with a bitter struggle for influence and markets, which is increasingly taking on military forms.

UK newspaper exposé details Amazon’s super-exploitation of workforce

Robert Stevens & John Newham

An undercover investigation by the Sunday Mirror newspaper has exposed brutal working conditions at Amazon’s warehouse in Tilbury, in southern England.

A reporter from the newspaper, Alan Selby, spent five weeks working at the “fulfilment centre”, which opened a few weeks ago and is the biggest warehouse of its kind in Europe. The four-storey plant occupies 2.2 million square feet—the size of 11 football pitches--and employs 1,500 workers.

Screenshot from the Sunday Mirror website with the caption "a workers appears exhausted standing on his feet"

Selby used a concealed camera to take video footage and photos of exhausted workers slumped at their work stations, while he himself was under constant pressure to increase his workload. He worked 10.5 hour shifts, with just two 30 minute breaks, for £8.20 (US $10.92) an hour —just a few pence above the £7.50 (US $9.99) minimum wage.

Selby explained, “Two half-hour breaks were the only time off my feet, but it was barely enough time to race to the canteen and wolf down some food to keep my energy up.”

Describing his workday, Selby wrote, “Alone in a locked metal cage, 10 feet from my nearest colleague, a robot approaches from the shadows and thrusts a tower of shelves towards me. I have nine seconds to grab and process an item to be sent for packing--a target of 300 items an hour, for hour after relentless hour.”

He reports how a computer screen in front of him gave constant reminders of his “units per hour” and exactly how long each has taken. Workers are given impossible targets under threat of being sacked. Breaks are timed and people are so exhausted that they fall asleep. Three of the photos in the exposé show workers slumped at their workstation, with one woman described as being asleep. Exhausted workers are warned about the consequences of even sitting down.

Screenshot from the Sunday Mirror website showing a worker asleep standing up and an ambulance outside the Tilbury plant

An angry co-worker asked, “Why are we not allowed to sit when it is quiet and not busy? We are human beings, not slaves and animals.”

One of Selby's pictures was of a filthy and unusable staff toilet. The plant is so huge that “walking to the toilet could take more than five minutes—almost a third of a mile from some of my workstations, and even longer when those on my floor were out of order, as they often were...the system would know I had not been active, so the pressure was on to hold it in.”

Selby was moved from the picking to the packing department. But the exploitation was just as extreme. He writes, “I was told to pack 120 single items an hour, or 85 multiple items. And I’ve since been told this will rise to 200 items.”

Workers are regularly fired for not meeting targets. Selby told of scores of staff sacked because of missed performance targets in the lead up to Black Friday.

The constant pressure has dangerous health consequences. “Workers reported ambulances being called to the warehouse on at least 2 occasions when one woman suffered a panic attack after being told she had to work compulsory overtime over Christmas, which would mean her working up to 55 hours a week, and another collapsed on the job, after struggling on despite feeling unwell.”

One worker told him, “Everybody suffers here. I pulled my hamstring but I just had to carry on. My friend spent two days off after she damaged her knee ligaments.”

Another said, “At my induction someone was asking why the staff turnover was so high here. It’s because they’re killing people. All my friends think I’m dead. I’m exhausted.”

Staff whiteboard with workers complaints about filthy toilets (Selby-Sunday Mirror)

Selby recalled "two safety incidents that could have seen somebody seriously hurt” in his final fortnight.

Selby also noted that he was barely able to tolerate Amazon's punishing regime even though he is physically fit. “Weeks before I went in, I had finished a summer running season which included two marathons and a handful of half marathons. Physically I am no slouch--yet my body felt drained every day. My blood pressure and resting heart rate both rose from the stresses of the job.”

He reported his body ached with the workload. His fitness tracker showed he walked at least 10 miles most days, with the physical effort leaving him on occasion feeling dizzy.

Despite the low wages, many workers have long, expensive commutes. Workers spend £4 (US $5.33) a day out of their own wages to get a bus to the plant from a site in London. Some spend four hours a day commuting.

These inhumane conditions are replicated at Amazon’s 16 UK fulfilment plants. Last December it was reported that workers at the Amazon plant in Dunfermline, Scotland, were forced to sleep in tents nearby in order to save on transport costs.

The company’s exploitation of its workforce is constantly being ramped up. This year Tilbury is due to ship 1.2 million items. In an article prior to Black Friday, the Daily Mail reported that workers at Amazon’s plant in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire were being expected to dispatch an aggregate of 85 items every second for the duration of the sale period.

One of the staff toilets at the Tilbury plant (Selby-Sunday Mirror)

To achieve its targets, Amazon is recruiting an additional 20,000 temporary workers--on poverty level wages--at its UK operations in the run up to Christmas. These are on top of its regular 24,000-strong workforce. This is the model employed by all the major players in the retail and delivery industry. The Commercialfleet.org website reported, “To help cope with the sheer volume of orders, an extra 49,000 seasonal staff will be hired across Royal Mail, Argos and Amazon bringing the total staff numbers working for all brands to 263,701.”

Based on the super-exploitation documented by Selby, Amazon--the UK’s largest retailer--made £7.3 billion (US $9.2 billion) in the UK last year alone. He concludes, “Its army of 24,000 unhappy elves are paid as little as seven pence per item to help pack and deliver each one across the UK. My final shift was two days ago, Black Friday--when millions of Brits logged on to help founder Jeff Bezos earn an extra £1.8 billion overnight.”

The World Socialist Web Site reported that Bezos recently became the world’s richest man with a net worth over £75.11 billion ($100 billion) due to the exploitation of Amazon’s 300,000 strong international workforce, the undercutting of competitors and monopolising the home delivery market. Workers make as little as £175 (US $233) per month in Amazon’s Indian plants, to an average of just £9.31 (US $12.40) an hour in the United States.

A final point should be noted about Selby’s exposure. He writes that the “Tilbury warehouse is a slick operation, up to speed on health and safety and workplace law. But just because it is legal does not mean it is good for you.”

This statement is damning indictment of the present Conservative government and past Labour ones who have eviscerated workplace standards and regulations to a point where such degradation of workers is legal!

This is all with the connivance of the trade unions. Some 2,500 Amazon workers in Germany struck six plants last week to demand better pay. Staff at an Amazon facility near Piacenza in northern Italy also struck on the same day to demand “dignified salaries” and more staff. The strikes were held last Friday to coincide with Black Friday. The role of the unions as appendages of management was summed up by its role in Italy, with the Daily Mirror reporting, “The unions advised workers who are on short-term, work-on-demand contracts to stay on the job, so they would not risk losing future gigs.”

The Sunday Mirror report sheds further light on the conditions reported by the International Amazon Workers Voice (IAWV), which is published by the WSWS and fights to link the struggles of Amazon workers in Europe, the US, Asia and Latin America in a unified fight for workers’ rights and socialism.

U.S. Department of State Pan-Africa Youth Leadership Program (PAYLP) 2018

Application Deadline: Varies by countries

To Be Taken At (Country): USA

About the Award: PAYLP is an intensive academic program offered by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA)’s Youth Programs Division. Through three-week intensive exchanges in the United States, participants engage in workshops on leadership and service, community site visits related to the program themes and subthemes, interactive training in conflict resolution, presentations, visits to high schools, local cultural activities, and homestays with local American families.  A key component of the program is for participants to develop follow-on community-based projects in their home communities to effect positive change after their return home.

Type: Short courses

Eligibility: 

• Youth participants should be high school students aged between 15 to 18 years at the start of the exchange who have demonstrated leadership potential through academic work, community involvement, and extracurricular activities.
• Each exchange delegation will also include adult participants who are teachers, trainers or community leaders who work with youth.  They will fill the roles of exchange participant, chaperone, and post-exchange mentor.
• All Candidates should have sufficient proficiency in English to allow them to participate in an academicprogram.

A Successful candidate for this program will have the following characteristics:

1   Student candidates:

• be a high school student who is 15, 16, 17, or 18 years of age by the start of the exchange
• be proficient in English
• attend at least one semester of high school in his/her home country following completion of the program;
• indicate a serious interest in learning about the United States
• demonstrate strong leadership qualities and potential in his/her school or community
• have a high level of academic achievement, as indicated by academic grades, awards, and teacher recommendations
• demonstrate a commitment to community service and extracurricular activities
• have had little or no prior study or travel experience in the United States or elsewhere outside of their home country
• be mature, responsible, independent, confident, open-minded, tolerant, thoughtful and inquisitive; and
• be willing and able to fully participate in an intensive program, community service, and active educational travel program during the exchange, as well as in follow-on activities afterward in their home countries.

2   Adult candidates:

• be a teacher, trainer, volunteer, or community leader who works with youth
• be proficient in English
• have a commitment to remain in teaching positions or other positions of influence on young leaders after the program
• indicate a serious interest in learning about the United States
• demonstrate an interest in developing professional skills
• be supportive of the teenage participants and assist them to become productive and responsible members of society
• exhibit maturity and open-mindedness, and
• be willing and able to fully participate in an intensive program, community service, and active educational travel program during the exchange, as well as to mentor youth in their follow-on activities afterward in their home countries.

Number of Awards: Approximately 50 youth and adult participants will travel to the United States in August of 2018.

Value of Award: The Department of State will cover travel and ground transportation, as well as book, cultural, housing, subsistence, mailing, incidental allowances and health benefits for all participants.

Duration of Program: August 4-25, 2018.

How to Apply: A complete application package will include the following:

• Application Form (Adult PDF 245 KB, Youth PDF 328 KB)
• Reference Form (Adult PDF 194 KB, Youth PDF 150 KB)
• School Transcripts for all years of secondary school completed (photocopy)
• Curriculum Vitae (English version)
• Signed letter of recommendation from Teacher/Supervisor (Portuguese or English version)
• Identification Document (photocopy)

To submit an application  and a reference forms by e-mail, send materials to MaputoExchangePrograms@state.gov with your name and “2018 Pan-Africa Youth Leadership Program (PAYLP)” in the subject line.

Late or incomplete applications will not be accepted.

Visit the Program Webpage for Details

Award Providers: US Embassy

Associated Press (AP) Global News Worldwide Internships for International Students 2018

Application Deadline: 10th December 2017

Eligible Countries: All

To Be Taken At (Country): 6 U.S. cities (Atlanta, Miami, New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C.) and 9 international locations (Bangkok, Berlin, Jerusalem, London, Mexico City, New Delhi, Rome, Rio de Janeiro and Tokyo).

About the Award: The Associated Press is the essential global news network, delivering fast, unbiased news from every corner of the world to all media platforms and formats. Founded in 1846, AP today is the largest and most trusted source of independent news and information. On any given day more than half the world’s population sees news from AP.

Training in all formats will include journalism ethics.  Interns must become familiar with – and abide by – the AP’s statement of values and principles governing ethics.

Type: Internship

Eligibility: Applicants must be:

• • current full-time students within two years of earning an undergraduate degree(juniors and seniors) when applying for the program or
  • current full-time graduate students or
  • students who graduate December 2017.
  • Freshmen and sophomores are not eligible.
• Must be able to show proof of legal authorization to participate in a 12-week internship in the assigned country prior to the start of the internship.
• Must have demonstrated proficiency speaking and writing in the English language and command of the local language of the assigned country.
• Relevant experience and training in text is required as well as a secondary visual format such as video, photos or interactive/graphics.
• Good general knowledge of national and international affairs.
• Good writing skills and the ability to recognize grammatical and factual errors.
• A prior journalism internship or experience in media.
• Knowledge of online and social media news venues.
• Highly organized and attentive to detail; able to multi-task and manage projects as assigned.
• Self-starter with the ability to collaborate effectively in a team environment.

Number of Awards: Not specified

Value of Award: 

• Interns will receive training and experience in text and in at least one other visual format (video, photos and interactive/graphics).
• Interns will contribute to the text report – reporting and writing their own stories. Reporting responsibilities will include conducting interviews, monitoring and using social media to find stories and to promote AP’s content, tracking down user-generated content and covering breaking news stories, either by phone or going to the scene.  Assignments may cover general news, sports, business or entertainment. Editors will train interns on such areas as interview techniques, sourcing, databases and AP style.
• Interns will assist in the production of video stories, including non-linear editing and writing story summaries and scripts.   They will assist in setting up news and feature stories and join location shoots, or do their own shooting.  Interns also may assist with content management and translations.
• Depending on background and skills, interns may accompany staff photographers on assignments, assist with arrangements in the field, or shoot photos themselves.  Staff photographers and editors will supervise interns on visual storytelling techniques and provide training in the use of photo editing software – Photoshop and Photomechanic – as well as transmission.
• Interns who have a background in interactive/graphics may assist in creating multimedia stories told through elements such as graphics, data visualizations, 3D animations, photos and videos. Interns should be familiar with HTML and web standards.
• Successful candidates will be strong storytellers who can demonstrate solid news judgment and the ability to suggest story ideas and angles and incorporate them in text, video and/or still images.  Interns should be comfortable interacting with a diverse group of co-workers and interview subjects.

Duration of Program: 12 weeks

How to Apply: 

• A 300-word autobiographical essay on this topic: “The Associated Press seeks to recruit and retain a workforce that embodies a wide range of talents, experiences, achievements and journalistic skills. Please describe the qualities and accomplishments you would bring to the company as an intern.”
• A resume and cover letter (please include your projected graduation date).
• Five to seven examples of your print/text work (links to an online site of your work are highly preferred).

• Three to five examples of your visual work — video, photos, multimedia, interactive, etc. (links to an online site of your work are highly preferred).
• A reference letter from a prior internship, employer or faculty adviser on college/university letterhead.
• All application materials should be uploaded simultaneously, including the reference letter.

Visit the Program Webpage for Details

Award Providers: AP

Important Notes: AP seeks to build an inclusive organization grounded in respect for differences. We support all aspects of diversity and provide equal employment opportunity to all employees and applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, marital status, national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability or status as a veteran in accordance with applicable nondiscrimination laws.

Allan and Nesta Ferguson Scholarships for African Students at SOAS, University of London 2018/2019

Application Deadline: 20th February 2018

Offered annually? Yes

Eligible Countries: African countries

To be taken at (country): SOAS at University of London

Accepted Subject Areas?

• Full-time MA African Studies
• Full-time MA International Studies and Diplomacy
• Full-time MA Social Anthropology of Development

About Scholarship: Thanks to the generosity of the Allan and Nesta Ferguson Charitable trust, three Ferguson scholarships have been established for African Students (African nationals and resident in Africa), who wish to undertake a taught masters course at SOAS.

Type: Masters

Selection Criteria

• Candidates will be assessed on academic merit by an Advisory Panel consisting of three academic members.
• The assessment of your application will be based on the information in your scholarship application.  Selectors will be looking at the degree results and also at academic references, statement and other relevant information.

Eligibility: Applicants should:

• Be nationals of and resident in an African country
• Hold an undergraduate degree at the first class level
• Hold an offer of admission to pursue one of the eligible programmes by the scholarship deadline.  Priority may be given to applicants with unconditional offers.  If your offer is conditional, please ensure you meet the conditions as soon as possible.
• Applicants must meet the English language condition of their offer of admission to study at SOAS as soon as possible but no later than 1 June 2018.  If your offer is conditional on English, please arrange your English test and ensure you meet the English requirement as soon as possible.

Number of Scholarship: Three (3)

Value of Scholarship: Each Allan and Nesta Ferguson Scholarship covers tuition fees in full and provides a maintenance grant of £7,000. In addition to this, International Student’s House (ISH) provides free accommodation and a food scholarship covering 3 meals a day.

Duration of Scholarship: For one year

How to Apply: You must follow two steps:

• STEP 1: Apply for your programme

You must submit a COMPLETE on-line application for admission.

Applicants must have an offer of admission to pursue a full-time masters programme at SOAS by the scholarship application deadline. A complete application for admission includes transcripts, an explanation of the grading system for any degrees obtained outside of the UK, two references, CV and a personal statement.  The panel will be considering your scholarship application TOGETHER with your on-line application for admission.  Please note that complete applications for admission can take up to 4 weeks to be considered by the Department, although this duration can vary depending on the time of the year.  You should be prepared to wait up to 6 weeks in busy periods.

It is recommended to apply for the programme about six weeks BEFORE the scholarship deadline (that is, by 9 January 2018).

• STEP 2: Apply for the scholarship by 17:00 (UK local time) on 20 February 2018.
  

You must apply for this scholarship via the on-line application form which will open HERE on 23 January 2018.

Visit Scholarship webpage for details

Sponsors: Allan and Nesta Ferguson Charitable trust

Important Notes: All candidates will be notified by e-mail regarding the outcome of their scholarship application, generally by the end of June.  The successful candidate will also be notified in writing.  If you have not had a response to your application by the end of June, please contact the Scholarships Officer.

Hasselt University Masters of Transportation Sciences Scholarships for Students from Developing Countries 2018/2019

Application Deadline: 1st March 2018

Eligible Countries: Developing Countries

To Be Taken At (Country): Belgium

About the Award: The Master of Transportation Sciences is happy to announce we now have a call for participants for the ICP programme 2018 “ROAD SAFETY IN LOW & MIDDLE INCOME COUNTRIES”.

The International Course Programme (ICP) anually offers twelve students from developing countries a scholarship to obtain an MSc in Transportation Sciences (specialization: Road Safety). The programme takes two years and has a specific focus on road safety in developing countries.

Students are trained to identify transportation and road safety issues in order to create innovative solutions by using an integrative approach based on three pillars: the individual (dealing with the human behaviour in traffic and how to influence it e.g. intentional and unintentional riskful behaviour such as drunk driving or cognitive impairments), the environment (e.g. creating self-explaining roads and infrastructure that minimizes crash impact) and the society (e.g. societal norms and translation into policy and enforcement measures). Road safety in this programme is approached as a cross-border field, incorporating elements of psychology, economy, urban planning, environmental studies, engineering and more.

Type: Masters

Eligibility: With the International Course Programme, VLIR-UOS financially supports English master’s programmes focussing on development-related themes. The scholarship sponsor has stipulated a number of eligibility criteria applicants must meet, e.g.:

• The maximum age of applicants should be 35 on 1st January 2018
• Only people from the below 31 countries are eligible for a scholarship
  • Africa: Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, DR Congo, Ethiopia, Guinea, Cameroon, Kenya, Madagascar, Mali, Morocco, Mozambique, Rwanda, Senegal, Tanzania, Uganda, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Niger
  • Asia: Cambodia, Philippines, Indonesia, Palestinian Territories, Vietnam
  • Latin America: Bolivia, Cuba, Ecuador, Guatemala, Haiti, Nicaragua, Peru

Number of Awards: 12

Value of Award:  

• Allowance: € 890/month
• Accommodation allowance: € 390/month
• Insurance, international travel and tuition fee

Duration of Program: 2 years

How to Apply: By March 1, 2018, we need to have a completed online application and hard copies of legalized degree certificates and academic transcripts by post. After March 1, 2018, all eligible applications will be reviewed and ranked. The top 12 applications will be selected for a scholarship.

Visit the Program Webpage for Details

Award Providers: VLIR-UOS

Mitacs Elevate Fellowship Program for Postdoctoral Students 2018 – Canada

Application Deadline: 24th January 2018

Eligible Countries: All

To Be Taken At (Country): Canada

About the Award: Mitacs Elevate is the only postdoctoral fellowship in Canada with professional skills training component. Mitacs Elevate is a postdoctoral fellowship with a customized research management training component. Fellows address complex challenges through:

• An exclusive research management curriculum for postdoctoral fellows in any discipline
• A minimum one-year research project (normally two years in duration) with a partner organization in need of high-level expertise
• A Partner Organization Business Case, developed to outline project objectives, risks, and stakeholder success criteria, and ensure project value

Elevate fellows progress through the program in a cohort, giving them cross-disciplinary networking and peer-learning opportunities they might not have otherwise in their careers.

Over the two-year fellowship, Elevate fellows divide their time between their partner organization project and university-based research with their faculty supervisor.

Type: Fellowship

Eligibility: 

• Mitacs Elevate is open to Canadian citizens, permanent residents, and international applicants. The fellow must be based at a university located in the same province as the partner organization for the duration of the fellowship.
• Fellows must be committed to the two-year fellowship, including the training and development, when applying to Elevate. Replacement and/or substitute fellows are not allowed.
• Postdoctoral fellows may apply for Mitacs Elevate fellowship if their date of graduation from a PhD program is no more than 5 years prior to the proposed start date the research project.  Fellows who have had a break in their career due to military service, illness, or family leave may be considered as exceptions and must be approved in advance of proposal submission. If this situation applies to you and/or you have any questions, please contact Mitacs at elevate(at)mitacs.ca.
• Successful candidates must have fulfilled all degree requirements (e.g., successful defense, final deposit, and signoff of dissertation) for their PhD at time of project start date which can be no later than September 5, 2018.
• All fellows who successfully enter into the Elevate program are responsible for ensuring that they meet the PDF eligibility criteria at their host institution and that they will hold a PDF status by the start date of their fellowship (no later than September 5, 2018) and for the two-year duration of the Elevate program.
  • Fellows must not have been employed for more than six months in an R&D position outside the university after receipt of their doctoral degree; and
  • Fellows must not have received an offer of employment from the partner organization except an offer of this fellowship or short-term employment of up to six months while awaiting a decision on the fellowship.
    • If the application is not recommended for an award, the candidate may not be eligible to apply again once he or she has accumulated more than six months of industrial or partner organization work. It is therefore recommended that candidates accept a temporary contract only if necessary and that the period of the contract be kept as short as possible.
  • Fellows who have held a Mitacs Accelerate award as a Masters, or PhD student are eligible to apply. Applicants may also apply if they have been approved for no more than 3 internship units of Accelerate funding (1 year equivalent) support at the postdoctoral level to be completed before the start of the Elevate fellowship.  Postdoctoral fellows who have already held a Mitacs Elevate award are not eligible to apply again to Elevate or to apply afterwards to Accelerate.
• Fellows cannot apply to multiple Mitacs programs for the same period of time.

Number of Awards: Not specified

Value of Award: 

• $55,000 minimum annual stipend/salary (for fellowships awarded after April 1, 2018)
• Training curriculum valued at $7,500 per year
• Submission assistance, including application feedback, from Mitacs representatives
• Certificate of completion after receipt of their exit survey and final report submission

Duration of Program: 2 years

How to Apply: Applicants are strongly encouraged to resolve the following before submitting their proposals:

• Submit an Intent to Apply no later than January 24, 2018, at 5 p.m. PT (non-mandatory)
• If applicable, submit an Intern or Supervisor Conflict of Interest (COI) Declaration. A declared conflict of interest must be submitted to elevate(at)mitacs.ca no later than January 24, 2018, at 5 p.m. PT. Please consult the Conflict of Interest section under Program Administration.
• Proposals with a not-for-profit partner must seek partner and project eligibility approval before proceeding. Please contact us at elevate(at)mitacs.caor a business development representative to discuss the eligibility of an NFP organization before submission of the completed application package.
• All applications should be prepared using the most current template found on the website. We strongly encourage you to submit a draft copy of your proposal for a one-time pre-review to elevate(at)mitacs.ca. Pre-reviews must be provided using the current program application form and will be accepted no later than February 7, 2018, at 5 p.m. PT.
• Review the Writing Your Elevate Proposal Guide when you begin writing your proposal

The completed Mitacs Elevate proposal should be written and submitted no later than February 21, 2018, at 1 p.m. PT to elevate(at)mitacs.ca. Late submissions will not be accepted.

A completed Application Package consists of the following:

• A completed application form
• A memorandum signed by all  parties, including relevant university research office, submitted as a scanned PDF
• Applicant’s CV
• Proposed academic supervisor’s CV
• Three signed letters of support maximum, on letterhead:
  • One (1) letter of support from the proposed academic supervisor
  • One (1) letter of support from a former supervisor or person familiar with the fellow’s research expertise
  • One (1) letter of support from an eligible partner organization on partner organization letterhead that confirms the amount of the financial commitment
• Any supplementary documents as applicable

Please submit the documents of your package as separate documents. Please do not combine them all in one file. ZIP files recommended.

If references would like to send their letters confidentially, they may email them to elevatereferences(at)mitacs.ca. All letters must be received at Mitacs by the competition deadline.

When you have all the necessary documents ready, please submit them by email to elevate(at)mitacs.ca. All applicants will receive a confirmation email from Mitacs when a complete application has been received.

Visit the Program Webpage for Details

Award Providers: Mitacs

Canadian Government Laboratories Program Visiting Fellowship for Emerging Scientists 2018

Application Deadline: Rolling

Applications to the Visiting Fellowships in Canadian Government Laboratories Program will not be accepted after January 9, 2018.

Eligible Countries: All

To be taken at (country): Canada

About the Award: Approved candidates to be offered a fellowship will be selected by the individual government departments. Successful applicants will be notified by NSERC or by the interested government department. Approximately three months after receipt of a complete application, departments may request additional information (e.g., interviews) before offering a fellowship.

Type: Research

Eligibility: 

• You must have received a doctoral degree in the natural sciences or engineering from a recognized university within the past five years. Your application will be accepted if you are currently enrolled in a doctoral program at a recognized university; however, you must expect to complete all requirements for your degree (including the thesis defence) within six months of submitting your application.
• If you have withdrawn from the workforce and active research for maternity leave, or to raise a child for at least one year, after you received your doctorate, NSERC will extend the eligibility period to six years.
• You can apply only twice for a Visiting Fellowship in Canadian Government Laboratories.

You will not be allowed to take up your award until confirmation of completion of degree requirements is received. You may hold only one Visiting Fellowship.

There are no restrictions on the nationality of applicants, but awards are subject to a citizenship quota: two-thirds of awards must be made to Canadian citizens or permanent residents. Successful candidates who are not Canadians or permanent residents of Canada must satisfy Canadian immigration requirements.

Selection Criteria: Selection committees, appointed by the individual government departments, will be responsible for the pre-selection of applicants, recommending only the most meritorious applicants.

The selection committee will rate the applications according to the following criteria:

• academic excellence
  • scholarships and awards held;
  • duration of previous studies;
• research ability or potential
  • quality of contributions to research and development;
  • relevant work experience and academic training;
  • critical ability, capacity for critical thought and analysis;
  • ability to apply skills and knowledge;
  • judgment, originality, and curiosity;
  • initiative and autonomy;
  • enthusiasm for research;
  • determination and ability to complete projects within an appropriate period of time;
• communication skills
  • ability or potential to communicate scientific concepts clearly and logically in written and oral formats (e.g., quality of presentation of application, participation in the preparation of publications, special awards for oral presentations or papers);
• interpersonal and leadership abilities
  • professional and relevant extracurricular interactions and collaborations (e.g., mentoring, teaching, supervisory experience, project management, chairing committees, organizing conferences/meetings, and elected positions held);
• justification for location of tenure and potential benefits to the government department (e.g., specific skills or experience that relate directly to ongoing research in participating government departments).

Number of Awardees: The number of awards varies according to the budgets of participating departments and agencies.

Value of Award: $53,077 per year

Duration of Program: one year, renewable for up to two more years

How to Apply: 

• Form 200 – Application for an Industrial Postgraduate Scholarship, an Industrial R&D Fellowship or a Visiting Fellowship in Canadian Government Laboratories
• Terms and Conditions of Applying Form (form-fillable)

To create or access an application, select On-line System Login. To view forms and instructions, select PDF Forms and Instructions.

To complete the Terms and Conditions of Applying Form, select the link above.

Visit Program Webpage for details

Award Provider: The Visiting Fellowships in Canadian Government Laboratories Program is administered by NSERC on behalf of Canadian government laboratories and research institutions.