Take part in a female leadership mentorship program in Nepal

The British Embassy in Kathmandu believes that building and promoting supportive relationships is essential to the empowerment of women and girls. So, on this International Day of the Girl 2021, we call on all young Nepalese women to apply to be part of a one-year mentorship program run by a group of embassies and development agencies led by women. .

Successful candidates will have the opportunity to be mentored by ambassadors and heads of agencies in Kathmandu, in order to improve their leadership skills.

What we offer

Successful candidates will be mentored by one of the following mentors:

• British Ambassador to Nepal, His Excellency Nicola Pollitt
• Australian Ambassador to Nepal, Her Excellency Felicity Volk
• EU Ambassador to Nepal, Her Excellency Nona Duprez
• Swiss Ambassador to Nepal, Her Excellency Elisabeth von Capeller
• USAID Chief Sepideh Keyvanshad
• Country Director of the British Council Nepal, Shahida MacDougall
• United Nations Resident Coordinator, Sara Beysolow Nyanti
• UNICEF Representative for Nepal, Elke Wisch
• UNDP Resident Representative, Ayshanie Medagangoda-Labe

For successful applicants, the program will include:

1. Six personalized mentoring sessions with your mentor focusing on skills essential for leadership development and career growth. You will be encouraged to talk about your priorities, including setting career goals, planning, networking, communications, and your personal brand.

2. Networking opportunities. You will be invited to participate in relevant events and meetings organized by one or more of the participating embassies, in order to enable you to participate in discussions on relevant issues and to create a useful network.

3. A day of “job-shadowing” with senior officials from embassies and agencies. If conditions allow, you will have the opportunity to observe senior officials, including the Ambassador / Head of Agency, to observe their daily work routines. We will plan a full day for you.

4. Events that bring you all together with all the mentors on International Women’s Day to celebrate women’s leadership.

All events, sessions and viewing opportunities will be subject to COVID-19 conditions and can take place virtually or in small groups, depending on prevailing conditions.

How to participate

Please apply by sending us a 1 minute (maximum) video of yourself uploading to WeTransfer, YouTube or Google Drive and send the link to [email protected] explaining why you want to participate in this leadership mentoring program and what you think other countries and development agencies can do to empower young people in Nepal.

Please shoot the video in landscape or horizontal mode. Avoid having a busy background while recording and too much ambient noise. The video should be well lit and clearly show the participant. We encourage you to be creative with the format and style of recording. Avoid sharing large files.

An embassy staff selection committee, headed by one or more ambassadors or chefs, will review applications and select the best to participate in the program. We will be looking for:

• enthusiasm
• creativity
• an understanding of how you will benefit from this opportunity
• a clear idea of ​​how you will use what you learn

What would you like to know

If you are successful, you will be part of the very first cohort of mentees from 2021 to 2022. We will prepare a full year program for you. But mentoring needs candidates to be proactive in order to be successful. You will need to take the time to plan and reflect, participate in discussion sessions that will focus on agreed topics every 2 months, and create networking opportunities.

We particularly welcome applications from girls belonging to minority or marginalized communities.

Contest rules

1. The video, not longer than 60 seconds, should be submitted as a link, for example via WeTransfer, YouTube or Google Drive and emailed to [email protected] with the subject line “Application: Leadership Mentorship Program 2021”. The deadline for submissions is Tuesday, November 16, 2021 11:59 PM NPT.

2. If you have any questions, please contact us at [email protected] with the subject line “Query: Leadership Mentorship Program 2021”.

3. The video can be in Nepali or English.

4. When submitting your video, include your full name, age, location, and contact numbers in a cover email.

5. Participation in the competition is open to women between the ages of 18 and 30 residing in Nepal during the competition period. Family members of staff from any of the embassies or organizations are unfortunately not eligible to apply for this opportunity.

6. Entries, including personal data of those not selected, will be deleted after the winners are announced.

7. The winners, who will be selected by a special selection committee made up of staff from the participating embassies / organizations, led by British Ambassador Nicola Pollitt, will be announced by Tuesday, December 7, 2021.

8. With the agreement of the applicants, the winning videos can be shared on the social networks of the British Embassy in Kathmandu or on those of other participating organizations.

9. The work of the selection committee will remain confidential and the decision cannot be appealed.

10. Submissions will be disqualified if found to be plagiarized or have been submitted by ineligible persons. Appropriate credit should be given to any other source of the content.

11. The winners will be contacted by the organizers with details and logistical arrangements. The schedule of sessions, events and opportunities will be determined by the organizers and shared with successful mentees.

12. If the winners (and a chaperone, if necessary) must travel from outside Kathmandu to participate in the program, the organizers will cover reasonable travel costs.

13. You should be prepared to bring a valid ID card showing your photo and age / date of birth, upon arrival at all events.