About the Initiative
The LOYOC Professional Internship and Fellowship for Emerging Young Peacebuilders (PIFEY) is an inclusive professional development program that offers young students, peace activist, civil society leaders and scholars from Cameroon the opportunity to join LOYOC’s team in any of the offices in Buea, Yaounde or Maroua to acquire hands on experience on; design, implementation, monitoring, evaluation and learning of peace building initiatives as well as acquire skills in organisational management and operations.

Since the inception of the pilot phase in 2016 the program has successfully produced about 30 alumni who have become a strong pipeline of young talented women and men working in the space of International Development with several international organizations, government, think tanks, and academia.

The program offers three-month fellowships for practitioners and two-months internship for students to improve strategies and techniques to lead  peace building and conflict prevention efforts. While interns and fellows will build on their experiences; design and implement initiatives; network; engage with stakeholder; conduct research and writing; consider best practices and lessons learned; and develop professional relationships within the national and global youth peace and security network, the Interns and Fellows are expected to complete a written product relating to their proposed area of interest. The program will culminate in a formal presentation where interns and fellows will share their learnings and showcase their initiatives developed.

Why the PIFEY Program

The rise of violent conflict in Cameroon has exposed the realities and key challenges of conflict resolution and peace building in Cameroon. Continuously young Cameroonians witnessing these conflicts have grouped themselves into social movements or opted to acquire more academic knowledge to respond to the conflict plaguing their communities.

Unfortunately despite the burning desire of young Cameroonians to respond to the root causes of these violent conflicts there exists a huge challenge of lack of capacity in designing, monitoring and evaluating initiatives. Young practitioners leading youth movements have expressed lack of skills in project and organisational management, idea articulation, resource mobilisation and  financial management. Students and scholars have expressed both the need for a connect between theories and practice and the lack of opportunities to build practical skills. These challenges have prevented these young people from exploiting their full potentials and amplifying their initiatives.

Application Procedure

Prospective applicants may apply on either the practitioner or scholarly track.

• Practitioners Track (Fellowship)- Three Months

The practitioners track is intended specifically for activists, civil society leaders and scholars. Applicants applying to the practitioner track are expected to have substantial practical experience working to promote peace, prevention of violent extremism and conflict prevention. There are no specific degree requirements for the practitioner track. The program will focus on typically mid-career professionals with at least a year of voluntary experience working in the field of international development.

• Students Track (Internship) – Two Months

This track is basically for students either studying in related fields of international development or peace studies from any university from across Cameroon. Applications for this track are primarily for  academic or professional  internship opportunities.  Applicants are expected to present a letter from their university, requesting an internship opportunity . The program is preferably for post graduate students.

Eligibility Criteria

• Young Cameroonian between the age of 18 to 35.
• Practitioner with at least 1 year of voluntary or work experience in international development or peace building work.
• Students currently undertaking post graduate or doctorate degrees.
• Demonstrate proficiency in English and French Languages.
• Be available to commit at least 40 hours a week for the entire duration of the program.

Application Requirements (to be submitted on the application platform)

• Cover Letter
• CV
• Letter of internship request from University/ institution (for Student Track Internships).

Benefits

• Project Design, implementation, monitoring, Evaluation and Learning
• Grant application and fundraising
• Conducting evidence based research
• Procurement and logistics management
• Strategic Communication and Advocacy
• Drafting and managing budgets for development initiatives
• Administration of Non profit organizations
• Stakeholder mapping and engagement

Apply using the following link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc7j14EH3v13dlVZ77ZUX1ObpuTzFi5M53OnpBWxNpqdnN0bA/viewform