Talent for Governance scholarship selection process enters decisive stage.

Talent for Governance, the hugely popular scholarship programme of The Hague Academy for Local Governance, has concluded the first stage of its 2010 application process. Until March 5, young, talented civil servants from across the world could submit a written application stating their motivation and suitability to follow a training course of the Academy this summer. Reflecting upon the hundreds of received applications, programme manager Marlies de Jong confidently stated that “once again, we will be able to offer some of the best local civil servants the unique opportunity to share their experiences, gain new expertise and build a professional network from which they will benefit for years to come”.

Since Talent for Governance published its call for scholarship applications in December 2009, almost 1000 young civil servants, working for local governments in developing countries and non-EU Eastern European states, expressed their interest in the programme. Hans Hindriks, who managed the application process, confirmed that “we received applications from over 50 different countries, covering all continents.”  With so many applications, the selection committee now faces the difficult task to select the most suitable candidates and offer them one of the highly contested scholarships. In the upcoming weeks, the written applications of all qualifying applicants will once again be examined, after which telephone interviews will be conducted with the most promising candidates.

Marlies de Jong is looking forward to this decisive stage of the selection process. “It is very motivating to see how all candidates are determined to improve living conditions at the local level, even though they sometimes face very challenging conditions. Through our scholarships, we hope to encourage these talented civil servants to continue their important work and offer them new skills and experiences for the benefit of their local communities and governments.”

The Talent for Governance selection committee aims to announce its final decision by April the 16th.