Deadline: March 21, 2026
Applications are open for the UNESCO Regional Youth Contest for Human Rights in Eastern Africa 2026. The UNESCO Regional Youth Contest for Human Rights in Eastern Africa invites youth aged 18–35 from Eastern African to creatively advocate for human rights as “Everyday Essentials” under the 2025 Human Rights Day campaign.
Through essays or poems, videos or animations and creative art, participants are encouraged to promote UNESCO’s five core human rights education; freedom of expression, information and privacy; scientific progress; cultural participation; and access to water and sanitation using innovative, ethical, and context-relevant approaches, including digital tools and AI.
Awards
- Prizes for the best Essay/Poem/Video/Animation
- A round trip (for each category) from the home country of the applicant to participate in a conference organized by UNESCO or a partner (in 2026 or 2027), including accommodation;
- A UNESCO Certificate; opportunity to make a presentation of the Essay/Poem during a dedicated session;
- Publication of the Essay on the UNESCO Website.
- Prizes for the 2nd and 3rd best Essays/Poems/Videos/Animation
- Cash awards of respectively $1,000 USD (2nd) and $500 USD (3rd);
- A UNESCO Certificate of participation;
- Opportunity to participate in and contribute to an online event organized by UNESCO;
- Publication of the Essays/Poems/Videos on the UNESCO Website.
- From 4th to 30th selected Essays/ Poems/Videos/Animation
- A UNESCO Certificate of participation;
- Publication of the Essays/Poems/Videos on the UNESCO Website.
Eligibility
- Be a youth aged between 18 – 35
- Be a national from any of the 13 Member States covered by the UNESCO Regional Office for Eastern Africa (Comoros, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Kenya, Madagascar, Mauritius, Rwanda, Seychelles, Tanzania, Somalia, South Sudan and Uganda).
- Language: English or French (for Essay/Poem); English, French or Swahili (for video). If you use Swahili kindly add caption in English.
- Essays/Poems must be original, innovative and unpublished. Already published works as well as plagiarized entries will be disqualified. If you use quotations, please include the reference at the bottom of the essay/poem (references are not included in the word count).
Style and Format
- The Essay may be in academic, literary, dissertation or creative writing style, and must be typed and contain a title. It should be submitted in PDF or MS Word. Font: Arial; Font Size: 12; Line and Paragraph spacing: 1.5, Word Count: 1500 – 2500 words maximum.
- The Poem may be in creative writing style and must be typed and contain a title. It should be submitted in PDF or MS Word. Font: Arial; Font Size: 12; Line and Paragraph spacing: 1.5, Word Count:
- Fully AI-generated contents for Essays and Poems will be excluded. In case of use of AI, include a separate note clearly outlining which part(s) was(were) AI-generated.
- Braile and Signed English (sign language) submissions are equally encouraged.
Application
ALL submissions MUST be uploaded on the application form by the 21 March 2026 at 23:59 p.m. EAT, coinciding with the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, and the World Poetry Day.
For more information, visit UNESCO Regional Youth Contest for Human Rights.
