How to submit a nomination
Eligible applicants
UNESCO awards the UNESCO/Emir Jaber Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah Prize for Digital Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities every two years. All individuals, institutions, other entities or non-governmental organizations active in the field of inclusion of persons with disabilities in society can present themselves as eligible candidates.
, and in official partnership with UNESCO are invited to solicit, nominate and submit candidates for the Prize.
- Read the Eligibility criteria
- (.pdf)
- UNESCO's Statutes for the Prize
- (ZIP with .doc)
Application Forms
- Organization Application ( - )
- Individual Application ( - )
Application process
1 - Submission: 16 June – 21 September 2020
To submit an application, the applicant must complete the application form available online.
Candidates are encouraged to include relevant supporting materials such as e-publications, videos, images and other.
Summary of Steps to complete the Full Application Process:
- Read the Statutes Application Guidelines
- Complete the online Application Form (Individual/ or Organization)
- Submit your Application online.
- Share your Story at
- Submit the Application form to Nominating Entity and request endorsement
2 - National Endorsement (National Commissions and Organizations with official partnerships with UNESCO): 5 October 2020
In order to participate, all applications must be endorsed by the Government of a Member State in consultation with their and relevant maintaining official partnerships with UNESCO. Therefore, Member States need to submit a written recommendation in support of the candidate’s project. Self-endorsements cannot be considered.
Where to find relevant National Commissions for UNESCO for the national endorsement?
To access contact details of the National Commissions for UNESCO, please consult the following websites:
What to submit to the National Commission for UNESCO seeking for its endorsement?
Approaching the National Commission for UNESCO in your country, please use the template for seeking its national endorsement:
(ZIP with .doc)
Below, a brief information required for the completion of the template:
- a description of the candidate’s background and achievements;
- a summary of the work or the results of the work, publications and other supporting documents of major importance, submitted for consideration;
- a definition of the candidate’s contribution to the Prize’s objectives.
3 - Jury Assessment: September – November 2020
When the candidature is found in compliance with the for submissions and the written recommendation is submitted, the application of the nominee is assessed by an independent Jury of 5 experts on several specific criteria. […]
In a Jury meeting, the prize winners, comprised of two laureates (individual and institution), are elected by a majority vote.
These laureates then will be evaluated and selected by UNESCO’s Director-General on the basis of the assessments and recommendations made by the Jury.
No appeals can be made against this final decision.
4 - Announcement: December 2020
UNESCO will tentatively announce the names of the winners on 3rd of December – International Day of Persons with Disabilities in a press release and communicate the decision to the winners and other applicants.
5 - Award Ceremony: 23 March 2021
Due to the global Covid-19 pandemic, the award ceremony is postponed to 23 March 2021. The laureates (individual and institution) will receive the prize which consists of a monetary reward of USD 20,000 each and a diploma.
There, the Prize-winner(s) will give, if possible, a lecture on a subject relevant to the work for which the Prize has been awarded.
6 - Dissemination: March 2021
After the award ceremony, the results of the assessments of best candidates by the Jury will be published on the website.
Endorsement of your application
In order to participate, all applications must be endorsed by the Government of a Member State in consultation with its National Commission for UNESCO. The relevant non-governmental organizations maintaining official partnerships with UNESCO could also endorse applications. Therefore, Member States need to submit a written recommendation in support of the candidate’s project. Self-endorsements cannot be considered.
Below, a brief information required for the completion of the template:
- a description of the candidate’s background and achievements;
- a summary of the work or the results of the work, publications and other supporting documents of major importance, submitted for consideration;
- a definition of the candidate’s contribution to the Prize’s objectives.
Contact details of
maintaining official partnerships with UNESCO which could also endorse applications.
(ZIP with .doc)