Background

The UNESCO International Literacy Prizes are an important instrument for UNESCO’s efforts to promote literacy and literate environments. Since the inception in 1967, UNESCO has awarded the International Literacy Prizes to over 518 outstanding and innovative literacy programmes undertaken by governments, NGOs and individuals across the world.

Currently, there are two Literacy Prizes:

• The UNESCO King Sejong Literacy Prize (3 awards), established in 1989, with the support of the Government of the Republic of Korea, it gives special consideration to mother language-based literacy development. Each prizewinner receives a medal, a diploma and US$20.000.

• The UNESCO Confucius Prize for Literacy (3 awards), established in 2005, with the support of the Government of the People’s Republic of China, it gives special consideration to functional literacy, leveraging technological environments, in support of adults in rural areas and out-of-school youth. Each prizewinner receives a medal, a diploma and US$30.000.

The Prizes are awarded each year to six programmes selected by the UNESCO Director- General based on the recommendation of the International Jury (3 programmes for the UNESCO King Sejong Literacy Prize and 3 programmes for the UNESCO Confucius Prize for Literacy).

Please see for your information a link related to the 2024 UNESCO International Literacy Prizes Laureates.

Call for applications and nominations

Every year, UNESCO invites Member States, through their National Commission for UNESCO and International Non-Governmental Organisations in official partnership with UNESCO, to submit nominations to the UNESCO International Literacy Prizes.

The application and nomination process has two steps. First, following a call for applications made by the UNESCO Director-General, interested organisations, institutions and individualsUNESCO International Literacy Prizes 2025: Call for proposals - Jury submit applications to nominating entities. Second, the nominating entities of applicants’ choice – a National Commission for UNESCO or an International Non-Governmental Organisations in official partnership with UNESCO – will review the applications and submit to the UNESCO Secretariat their nominations. Each Government or NGO can nominate up to three applications for each of two Literacy Prizes.

The International Jury appointed by UNESCO’s Director-General, meets annually, and identifies outstanding and innovative programmes to recommend them for Director-General decision.

Selection criteria adopted to evaluate programmes for the recent editions included: Relevance to individuals and societal needs and robustness, Quality of teaching and learning, Impact, Innovative features, and Sustainability.

Another aspect considered is the relevance to the given themes. Every year, the Prizes address specific theme, defined for the celebration of International Literacy Day. Candidates are invited to prepare applications, taking into account this theme as well as the specific themes of each prize, described herein above.

Please see the application and nomination process developed for the UNESCO International Literacy Prizes: https://www.unesco.org/en/priz...

International Jury

• The International Jury meets once a year to evaluate nominations received by the UNESCO Secretariat and recommend up to 6 programmes to the UNESCO Director- General for her final decision.
• The Jury is made up of high-profile practitioners and academics in the field of education, with demonstrated expertise in literacy, who are appointed by the Director-General for two-year periods for a maximum period of six years.
• The Jury shall consist of five independent members, being personalities with recognized reputation in the field covered, while also taking into consideration the need for equitable geographical distribution, gender equality and the principle of non-payment of honoraria.

For your information, please refer to the Statutes of both UNESCO International Literacy Prizes:

Statutes of the UNESCO King Sejong Literacy Prize as approved by the Executive Board at is 209th Session: https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark...

Statutes of the UNESCO Confucius Prize for Literacy as approved by the Executive Board at its 211th Session: https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark...

Deadline for application

For the 2025 edition of the UNESCO International Literacy Prizes, two new jury members, need to be selected, while the other members from Asia and the Pacific region and Africa will remain: https://www.unesco.org/en/priz....

An interested candidate for a member of the International Jury, from regions that are currently not represented—namely Latin America and the Caribbean, the Arab States, and Europe and North America—is invited to express their interest to the Secretariat of the UNESCO International Literacy Prizes, located in the Section of Youth, Literacy and Skills Development in the Division for Policies and Lifelong Learning Systems of UNESCO) by sending email to (literacyprizes@unesco.org) no later than 21 February 2025. Please attach the following information to the application: 1) a curriculum vitae; 2) statement regarding the application (max. 300 words) and 3) list of publications.

The successful candidates are expected to be contacted by March 2025 and will be requested to participate in a meeting of the International Jury which may take place in late spring 2025.

Selection criteria

The selection criteria will be based on the following requirements:

1. Basic requirements

• A minimum of ten years of progressively responsible experience in literacy and the areas related to the UNESCO International Literacy Prizes (e.g. mother-tongue literacy education and training, out-of-school youth, literacy for people in rural areas);
• Advanced degree in education, development studies, international development, social science or literacy.

2. Criteria

• Proven knowledge and experience literacy and the related areas with an international and comparative perspective;
• Knowledge and expertise in project/programme management in literacy and/or other areas of relevance such as education, training, skills development, youth, agriculture and rural livelihoods, rural development;
• Capacity and experience in evaluation of programmes;
• An established record of papers, reports and publications in the related fields;
• Excellent/very good knowledge of English;
• Good knowledge of other official languages of the UN (spoken and written) would be desirable.