EPL Fellowship Programme
Public Service Fellowship Programme
Targeting youth aged 18 to 35; the Fellowship Programme attracts bright and motivated university graduates and young public service professionals, offering them the tools and support to develop into future leaders within the public sector.
The goal is for the Fellows to transition into long-term positions within the public sector upon graduation, over time creating a lifelong network of public servants across an ecosystem of government ministries, departments and agencies in Africa.
- is a programme implemented in partnership with the Mastercard Foundation
- Is a youth leadership and employability programme
- Designed to equip young professionals with skills and experience to contribute to public sector transformation.
- Supports innovation, leadership, and service delivery improvements in government Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs).
- Paid one-year fellowship programme
- Placement in the MDAs
- Capacity Building
- Mentorship
- Professional Development
- Community Services Project
- A Laptop
- Paid Fellowship
- Networking Opportunities
- Must be a Malawian with National ID
- No criminal record
- Must be a university graduate with a Bachelor's degree
- Aged between 18-35
- Basic Computer skills
- Strong written and verbal English skills
- Passion for Civil Service
Our Core Approach
We partner with civil service agencies to identify professional skills gaps and rigorously select, train, and support ethical and exemplary young leaders to meet those needs
Our Target
By 2027, EPL aims to have recruited, placed, and trained a total of 1,000 fellows, at least 70% women in future cohorts, into the civil service, expanding to 6 African countries.
EPL’s SIX CORE COMPONENTS
EPL utilizes an objective, multi-stage recruitment and selection process, coupling minorities sensitive recruitment with a blind evaluation process that anonymizes all applications but reflects a mindfulness of inclusivity.
EPL co-develops with governments and other partners a comprehensive curriculum based on needs and opportunities of each program context, to contribute towards addressing the public service’s long-term human capital needs and ensure Fellows are prepared with the technical skills of the future to solve the Africa’s most pressing challenges in trade, climate change, democratic governance, conflict and insecurity among other
The mentorship component of the Fellowship Program actively fosters intergenerational learning and collaboration, with mentors serving as sounding boards and providing support and coaching as fellows navigate their public service careers. Each fellow is paired with two seasoned professionals outside of their workplace either one from the public sector and the other from the private sector, or both being from different backgrounds of the public sector
As part of the Fellowship Program, Fellows gain a better understanding of local governance and build camaraderie as a cohort through participation in community projects in rural communities. Many of the Fellows are from these communities and have the opportunity to interact with community leaders and the civil service in local and regional governments
At the start of the Fellowship Program, Fellows create leadership development plans, which help them envision what they expect to accomplish in their public service careers and throughout the Fellowship Program. EPL also employs a structured performance management system to account for the individual workplace performance of each Fellow and their areas for growth
Drawing on its cohorts across various country programs, EPL is developing a robust alumni network and related associations to foster long-term engagement, commitment and peer support towards continued public service, helping to also mitigate early career stage attrition of alumni from the public service to other sectors of employment. Through this alumni network, Fellows can continue to receive EPL and peer driven career guidance and continuous professional development opportunities to equip them to continue to thrive in public service
EPL utilizes an objective, multi-stage recruitment and selection process, coupling minorities-sensitive recruitment with a blind evaluation process that anonymizes all applications but reflects a mindfulness of inclusivity
EPL co-develops with governments and other partners a comprehensive curriculum based on needs and opportunities of each program context, to contribute towards addressing the public service’s long-term human capital needs and ensure Fellows are prepared with the technical skills of the future to solve the Africa’s most pressing challenges in trade, climate change, democratic governance, conflict and insecurity — among others
The mentorship component of the Fellowship Program actively fosters intergenerational learning and collaboration, with mentors serving as sounding boards and providing support and coaching as fellows navigate their public service careers. Each fellow is paired with two seasoned professionals outside of their workplace — either one from the public sector and the other from the private sector, or both being from different backgrounds of the public sector.
As part of the Fellowship Program, Fellows gain a better understanding of local governance and build camaraderie as a
cohort through participation in community projects in rural communities. Many of the Fellows are from these communities and have the opportunity to interact with community leaders and the civil service in local and regional governments
At the start of the Fellowship Program, Fellows create leadership development plans, which help them envision what they expect to accomplish in their public service careers and throughout the Fellowship Program. EPL also employs a structured performance management system to account for the individual workplace performance of each
Fellow and their areas for growth.
Drawing on its cohorts across various country programs, EPL is developing a robust alumni network and related associations to foster long-term engagement, commitment and peer support towards continued public service, helping to also mitigate early career stage attrition of alumni from the public service to other sectors of employment. Through this alumni network, Fellows can continue to receive EPL and peer-driven career guidance and continuous professional development opportunities to equip them to continue to thrive in public service.
Register now to join the Fellowship
Emerging Public Leaders of Malawi believes that citizens of Malawi and other African Countries deserve strong government institutions, fair and equitable public service, transparent and accountable public leaders. We also believe in greater inclusion of young people, especially young women in public service decision making to reflect Africa’s youth population’s urgent needs
