The Clooney Foundation Waging Justice for Women Fellowship 2027 for early-career women lawyers in sub-Saharan Africa

Application Deadline: October 20, 2026

Applications are actually open for the 2027 Clooney Foundation Waging Justice for Women Fellowship. The Fellowship Programme funds and locations ten early-career women lawyers in various human rights and justice organizations in Kenya, Malawi, South Africa and The Gambia. These embrace authorized assist suppliers, choose universities with authorized assist clinics, and authorities prosecution providers to offer authorized providers for women and kids in any respect levels of the justice course of.

The Programme equips fellows with the instruments they should advocate for the rights of women and kids particularly in opposition to child marriage and violence in opposition to women and kids. Fellows obtain immersive sensible work expertise and hands-on coaching and perform a variety of duties together with authorized analysis, drafting, shopper help and authorized illustration in court docket.

How It Works

CFJ offers the fellows with mentoring, coaching and entry to a few of Africa’s main human rights and justice specialists, lawyers, judges, activists and lecturers. Upon completion of their fellowship, the fellows are inducted into the CFJ Fellowship Alumni Network for ongoing help, information sharing {and professional} progress.

Requirements

• A regulation diploma from a acknowledged tutorial establishment
• Practicing Certificate: The applicant should be admitted to follow as a lawyer in the nation of the chosen host group
• Relevant Work expertise:
  • Up to five years of expertise in the authorized subject following commencement from regulation college/qualification as a lawyer in your jurisdiction.
  • Experience in women’s rights and dealing in human rights organizations most well-liked
• Work authorization in the related host nation:
  • Specifically, have the proper to work in the host group’s nation: Kenya, Malawi, South Africa, or The Gambia. [Please note that costs relating to international relocation and acquiring work authorization cannot be supported].

Relevant Skills/Competencies

• Alignment with CFJ’s mission and targets and people of the related host group
• A demonstrated skill to conduct complicated authorized evaluation and fact-finding
• Excellent analysis, writing and verbal communication expertise
• Self-starter with wonderful interpersonal and teamwork expertise
• Demonstrated dedication to justice and human rights, and creativity in crafting methods to advance justice for women and kids who’re victims of violence or child marriage
• Additional expertise working with survivors and/or impacted communities most well-liked
• Willingness to journey
• Experience working with susceptible people together with kids or victims of violence could be helpful
• Fluency in English required; proficiency in different working languages related to the nations of host organizations most well-liked

Benefits

• A paid work placement at a human rights group, a college authorized assist clinic, or authorities authorized establishment in Kenya, Malawi, The Gambia or South Africa finishing up groundbreaking work to finish violence in opposition to women and kids via authorized illustration and recommendation, strategic litigation and the progressive use of expertise to tell women of their rights and make prosecutors and professional bono lawyers extra environment friendly.
• Mentorship by the Justice for Women & Children Programme Director, host organizations’ supervisors and human rights specialists from the area
• At least one in-person convening with different fellows and supervisors in addition to senior CFJ management and an intensive month-to-month on-line coaching Programme led by human rights specialists
• Access to a worldwide community of main human rights specialists, lawyers, judges, activists and lecturers in addition to different next-generation leaders.
• Enrollment in the CFJ Fellowship Alumni Programme community upon completion of the fellowship yr for continued help, information sharing and collaboration

For More Information:

Visit the Official Webpage of the Clooney Foundation Waging Justice for Women Fellowship