Malala Fund

A moment of appreciation for the incredible young women in Nigeria, who leveraged Day of the Girl to bring their demands for better education systems to leaders directly. In an event with Malala Fund, girls shared with leaders their unique experiences and challenges with Nigerian school systems and offered solutions like promoting inclusion of girls in STEM, providing courses on menstrual and reproductive rights and putting more effort to eliminate bias against girls in schools. More on the event and what girls had to say at mala.la/nigeriaidg24

"When girls are given the chance to share their opinions and be a part of something that gives them the power to create a vision for their education, that means the world to them.” Malala chats with Ayesha and Tamilore, two Malala Fund Fellows, why girls are the real experts on how their needs must be prioritised & what keeps them inspired as fellow activists at mala.la/4eF7K4G

"So many intersections of oppression happen in the climate crisis. Activism is about survival." Young climate activists from around the world share the challenges they face fighting for climate justice via Nonprofit Quarterly at mala.la/3UaIZFp

"We need to stand in solidarity with Afghan women, which means more than just words — it’s about action...We must demand world leaders hold the Taliban accountable, not normalize relations with them while they commit such violations." Malala speaks on gender apartheid in Afghanistan and action needed from the international community via PassBlue ➡️ mala.la/3YapSfN Photo: Krys Fox

“When women and girls are involved in shaping policies and decisions, it promotes gender equality and helps to dismantle systemic barriers that have historically marginalised them.” Girls’ Vision for Education steering committee member Laurine shares the importance of creating inclusive spaces that reflect student needs at mala.la/3A08Ngn

Malala Fund has put the voices of young women front and centre since our founding. That’s because we know that to build a world where every girl can access and complete their education, we need to involve them — and we need leaders to do the same. In honour of International Day of the Girl, the team at Malala Fund is excited to share that we are working on a new project called Girls’ Vision for Education, which aims to reveal how young women and girls around the world might reimagine and redefine secondary education if given the chance. We expects to share findings early next year. Learn more about the consulation process and how you can take action and support girls’ futures on IDG below.

“Too often, girls are sidelined in conversations about their future, despite being the ones most directly affected by the decisions made. Girls are the experts in their own lives. They know best what they need to thrive — and it’s time we all listened.” Meti, Malala Fund Fellow and Girls’ Vision co-lead on why girls need to be front and centre in in reforming global education systems 👉🏾 mala.la/meti

On Day of the Girl, Malala, Tamilore Omojola and Dr. Ayesha Kareem team up to school you on the basics — why girls should be involved in decision making about… well, girls. Sounds simple? That’s because it is. But leaders don’t seem to get it. Girls are the experts of their own experience — and they are eager to make their voices heard on the issues that affect them most. By ensuring girls’ perspectives inform the processes and policies that impact them, we can help shape more equitable, responsive and effective school systems. Find Tamilore, Ayesha and Malala’s conversation about why girls — from all backgrounds — are the real experts on what they want, and how their needs must be prioritised at mala.la/4eF7K4G

Today is the International Day of the Girl. Across the world, girls are breaking down the barriers and stereotypes that hold them back. More girls are in education than at any point in history. At school, they are performing better than boys. They are deeply involved in their communities and fights for justice; they are at the forefront of climate action and peace campaigns.   Girls are disproportionately affected by the crises that afflict our world today - whether it's climate, conflict, deepening inequality, or the rollback of rights.   Nowhere is this more apparent than in Afghanistan, where girls have had their rights to learn and their futures stolen from them. They are not allowed to go to school beyond grade six. As women, they will not be able to attend university, work, move freely, and even speak in public under the Taliban's cruel, sweeping misogynistic regime of laws and practices.   This week, I had the pleasure of discussing with Malala Yousafzai, at the American Society of International Law's gala, what can be done to hold the Taliban accountable. We all know Malala as the schoolgirl who heroically defied the Pakistani Taliban by pursuing her education, speaking out against their ban on girls' education, and then surviving an assassination attempt. After recovering, she took her campaign global. And now she's urging us all to pay attention to Afghanistan - and the Taliban's crime of gender apartheid.   There are currently steps being taken toward a case for the violations of women's rights at the International Court of Justice. Meanwhile, the International Criminal Court has an investigation on Afghanistan that can pursue the Taliban for the crime against humanity of persecution by gender.   Inspired by Afghan women's rights defenders, Malala and the Malala Fund are campaigning for the crime against humanity of gender apartheid to be codified in international law, particularly in the draft Crimes Against Humanity treaty that has been debated at the UN this week.   As Richard Bennett, the Special Rapporteur on Afghanistan, wrote in a recent report, there is "an institutionalized system of discrimination, segregation, disrespect for human dignity and the exclusion of women and girls." That's the definition of gender apartheid.   At Open Society, we believe all avenues for accountability for the crimes against women and girls in Afghanistan should be pursued - whether it's in national courts exercising universal jurisdiction, the ICJ, the ICC, or through a new Crimes Against Humanity Treaty. Afghan women and girls are resisting the Taliban's rule from exile, from the streets of Afghanistan, and even from inside their homes.   We owe it to them to stand with them in this fight.

If we hope to build a world where every girl can access and complete their education, we need to involve girls in the planning process. That’s why Malala Fund has put the voices of young women front and centre since our founding. Young women are on our board. We platform their perspectives on our channels. We bring them into decision making spaces. We invest in their projects and organisations that help break down barriers to girls’ education. We also ask for their ideas on how to strengthen education systems. Now, Malala Fund is partnering with young women to develop a resource called Girls’ Vision for Education. Drawn from consultations with nearly 800 girls, this resource will feature insights and priorities, solutions and recommendations from girls themselves on how they would reimagine their education in a world without barriers to learning. For Day of the Girl, five young women who made up our steering committee share about the process and why girls’ voices must be at the centre of education policy at mala.la/3U5j9CK.