Teacher Prize

UNESCO-Hamdan Prize for Teacher Development

The UNESCO-Hamdan Prize for Teacher Development was created in 2008 to support the improvement of teaching and learning quality in achieving the Sustainable Development Goal 4 on education, which is one of UNESCO’s priorities.

Awarded every two years, the Prize is generously supported by the Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation for Distinguished Academic Performance (Hamdan Foundation).

The Hamdan Foundation was established in 1998 by His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai and Minister of Finance of the United Arab Emirates. The Foundation targets educational excellence and the sponsorship of giftedness and innovation, to improve educational performance at all levels and sectors, honouring all groups and relevant authorities in the education sector and institutions, as well as the individuals who provide outstanding achievements and creations.

The Prize amounts to US $300,000, which is equally divided between three winners whose projects aim at improving worldwide the performance and effectiveness of teachers worldwide.

The winners are selected by an International Jury composed of five distinguished professionals chosen for their high-level of knowledge and experience in teacher-related issues.

Hamdan Prize 2023 call for nominations

2023-2024 edition

The call for nominations and applications for the 2023-2024 edition of the UNESCO-Hamdan Prize for Teacher Development is now closed.

Selection process

Governments of UNESCO Member States via their National Commissions to UNESCO and Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) in official partnership with UNESCO can make up to 5 nominations. Self-nominations are not accepted.

  • National Commissions: the nomination letter is drafted by the President or Secretary General of the National Commission.
  • NGOs in official partnership with UNESCO: the nomination letter is drafted by the President or Director-General at headquarters. If the NGO has branches, the Head of the NGO branch may draft the nomination letter, however a communication confirming that the candidate nomination has been approved by the executive leadership at headquarters should be joined to the nomination letter from the branch.

Institutions or organizations; international or national governmental or non-governmental organizations; educational or research institutions active in the field of teaching and learning.

Nominations must focus on an established project or programme of the candidate, which is ongoing and has been running for at least three years, and that meets the selection criteria (see below). Attention should be paid to presenting the project/programme of the candidate in a clear and structured way.

Projects from individuals are not eligible for nominations and will not be considered. Only projects from organizations and institutions may be nominated.

The project submitted by candidates shall have made a significant contribution to enhancing teaching and learning, in line with UNESCO’s principles and objectives in this field:

  • by demonstrating innovation aimed at promoting the quality and effectiveness of teaching;
  • by producing teaching materials or other special aids designed for the development of innovative teaching and learning;
  • by mobilizing initiatives and/or means likely to contribute to enhancing the quality and effectiveness of teaching;
  • by strengthening coordination and research that inform and enhance teacher quality and effectiveness. 

In addition to the conditions described above, the project must: 

  • have been implemented for at least three years, so its results can be evaluated and its effectiveness verified;
  • represent an outstanding contribution to the fundamental objectives of UNESCO and the UN in the field of quality education for sustainable development;
  • be such that it can be reproduced elsewhere and is likely to foster similar initiatives;
  • have shown itself to be effective in mobilizing new intellectual and material resources.

Nominations can be submitted in one of two ways:

  1. Candidates wishing to be nominated for the Prize may contact the National Commission for UNESCO of their country or an NGO maintaining official relations with UNESCO to request a nomination letter;
  2. Nominating bodies identify nominees and send them a nomination letter.

Each nominating body can nominate up to 5 candidates, no later than by the set deadline. Any additional nominations will not be taken into consideration.

The nomination letter must comply with the Prize requirements. It must:

  • Be on official paper, stamped and signed by the nominating body and include the date of the nomination;
  • Be submitted in French or English, only;
  • Indicate the starting-date and expected end-date of the project, or whether the project has no expected end-date;
  • Explain how the nominating body has known the candidate organization and the reason(s) why it is nominating the candidate project for the Prize;
  • Certify that the nominating body has reviewed the information included in the candidate’s application and that it is accurate;
  • The nomination letter must not be longer than 300 words.

Candidates must register online to request an account. In doing so, candidates must comply with the eligibility requirements.

  • After registration is completed, only eligible candidates receive an invitation link via email to access and complete the online application form;
  • Candidates upload the nomination letter in the online platform;
  • Candidates receive an email notification once they submit their application. Their respective nominating body also receives an automatic notification announcing the submission of the application;
  • The application is received by the Prize Secretariat and the process is complete.

In exceptional cases, where candidates do not have access to the Internet, nominating bodies can request access to the online platform to submit the candidate nomination and application. In order to do this, the National Commission to UNESCO or the NGO in official partnership with UNESCO may contact the Prize Secretariat.

Please consult the User’s guide for candidates if you need further guidance for the online application process.

For any question regarding the processes of nomination and application to the UNESCO-Hamdan Prize for Teacher Development, please contact the Prize Secretariat at UNESCO’s Section for Teacher Development: Tel: +33 (0) 1 45 68 05 46; E-mail: teacherprize@unesco.org.

  • Launch of the call for nominations and applications: June 2023 
  • Submission of applications online: 31 January 2024
  • Meeting of the International Jury: May-June  2024
  • Award ceremony and announcement of the laureates: October 2024, World Teachers’ Day
  • Download the statutes of the Statutes of the UNESCO-Hamdan Prize for Teacher Development .

The laureates are selected by an international jury composed of five distinguished professionals chosen for their extensive expertise and experience in teacher-related issues. The Director-General of UNESCO nominates the jury members. They represent each region of the world, according to UNESCO’s regional classification. 

The UNESCO-Hamdan Prize for Teacher Development was created in 2008 to support the improvement of teaching and learning quality in achieving the Sustainable Development Goal 4 on Quality Education, which is one of UNESCO’s priorities.

Awarded every two years, the Prize is generously supported by the Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum Foundation for Distinguished Academic Performance (Hamdan Foundation).

Hamdan Foundation was established in 1998 by His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai and Minister of Finance of the United Arab Emirates. The Foundation targets educational excellence and the sponsorship of giftedness and innovation, to improve educational performance at all levels and sectors, honouring all groups and relevant authorities in the education sector and institutions, as well as the individuals who provide outstanding achievements and creations.

The Prize amounts to US $300,000, which is equally divided between three winners whose projects aim at improving worldwide the performance and effectiveness of teachers.

The winners are selected by an International Jury composed of five distinguished professionals chosen for their high-level of knowledge and experience in teacher-related issues.

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