Malala Fund’s 2021–2022 Annual Report highlights our recent progress for girls’ education.
Reflections on the last year
Over the last year, we have witnessed how the most challenging issues of our time — from protracted conflict to political and social unrest to environmental disasters — exacerbate girls’ education access worldwide. Our work in places like Afghanistan, Ethiopia and Lebanon became even more complex, as girls face compounded barriers to attend school. Because of our amazing supporters, we continue to be on the front lines, working alongside local activists who understand how these issues impact their communities better than anyone else.
At Malala Fund, our belief that girls are the change-makers we seek is more steadfast than ever. The 2021–2022 Annual Report details the launch of programmes like the Malala Fund Fellowship, which provided opportunities for young women in several of our programme countries to connect, learn and take action to improve the lives of girls in their communities. This past year the fellows participated in conferences like COP26, the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women and the launch of the 2022 UNESCO Gender Report, meeting with senior government leaders and decision-makers and advocating for the rights of girls and young women.
You’ll also read about the growth of Malala Fund’s Education Champion Network, which welcomed a new cohort of champions and expanded into Bangladesh and Tanzania. Our partners in these countries are making strides in combating threats to girls’ education like lack of access to schools, gender-based violence and vulnerability to natural disasters.
And in March 2022, Malala Fund published our latest briefing, Rights in jeopardy: How the international community should respond to the girls’ education crisis in Afghanistan, just as the Taliban closed schools for Afghan girls. Our policy work is coupled with emergency response support for both the evacuation and resettlement of Malala Fund colleagues and partners from Afghanistan, including several dozen family members, as well as the safe resettlement of 200 additional Afghan human rights defenders. The courage and resolve that our co-founders, Malala and Ziauddin, have modeled in this moment has been an inspiration for our global team.
These and countless other initiatives are only possible with your ongoing commitment to Malala Fund. Thank you for your steadfast support. Together, we will keep building towards a future where every girl can learn and lead.
