First 29 women started their fellowship programme in the field of women’s inclusion in political and peace processes in the Middle East and North Africa region

Participants have a track record in academia, civil society, business and the private sector, as well as media and journalism. They will be part of a wider regional group of more than 75 women fellows in the coming year.

A series of tailored online modules will lead to a face-to-face Summer School in September 2022 in Beirut, Lebanon. During the Summer School activists and leaders from different sectors will be able to share experiences and reflect on their activism. Participants will be provided with learning and networking opportunities and support in their actions.

The fellowship programme will help ensuring that the voices of the women are heard via national, regional, and international platforms for knowledge sharing, evidence-based advocacy and policy making. It will contribute to the inclusion of gender perspectives in peacebuilding, governance and post-conflict reconstruction and address structural and institutional barriers that prevent women from meaningfully participating in peacebuilding. Thus, enabling an inclusive women-owned homegrown approach and vision for what a feminist peace looks like.

The SAWT regional fellowship programme facilitates the effective participation of emerging Middle East and North Africa women leaders and grassroots activists in political spheres. The programme is funded by the European Union, led by the Arab Reform Initiative and implemented by the Asfari Institute for Civil Society and Citizenship at the American University of Beirut.