WASHINGTON, UNITED STATES – The US-based Malala Fund announced that it has pledged over $1.5 million to support education for Afghan girls, aiming to keep schoolgirls learning in Afghanistan.
Founded by Pakistani education activist and Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai in 2013, the Malala Fund advocates for girls’ education worldwide.
In a statement on Friday, June 14, the Malala Fund announced more than $1.5 million in new funding to honor 1,000 days of women and girls’ resistance. This funding will support 13 organizations working to ensure girls continue learning and to hold the Taliban accountable for their crimes.
“We are proud to support these innovative and impactful initiatives,” said Sahar Halaimzai, Director of Malala Fund’s Afghanistan Initiative. “By providing digital and alternative education pathways, we are ensuring that Afghan girls continue their education despite the extreme interruption they have faced over the last three years,” she added.
With the new funding, the Malala Fund aims to provide educational content to approximately one1 million young individuals via satellite television. Additionally, it plans to educate thousands of Afghan girls through classes conducted in homes, learning centers, and online platforms.
Yesterday, June 13, the 1,000th day passed since the Taliban imposed a ban on girls’ education beyond the sixth grade. Later, the ban extended to universities, barring female students from attending both private and state institutions across the country.
According to the UN, approximately 80% of school-age girls, totaling over 2.5 million, and more than 100,000 female university students are prohibited from receiving education in Afghanistan.
In a social media post today, Malala Yousafzai urged the world to speak up for Afghan girls, stressing their unique situation amidst the numerous tragedies in the world, from Gaza to Sudan to Ukraine.
“Afghanistan is the only country in the world that bans girls from going to school,” she said.
“Many brave women and girls are fighting back, learning in secret and refusing to let the Taliban deny them their rights. They need and deserve our support,” she added.
Since the Taliban’s return to power and their imposition of severe restrictions on the fundamental rights of women and girls, Malala Yousafzai has consistently criticized their policies. Over the years, she has repeatedly called for the recognition of the Taliban’s oppressive measures as “gender apartheid.”
“Our first imperative is to call the regime in Afghanistan what it really is. It is gender apartheid,” she said last year during the 21st annual Mandela Lectures in South Africa, emphasizing the need to recognize gender apartheid as a crime against humanity.
She called on the international community to pay attention to what’s happening to girls and women under Taliban rule in Afghanistan.
“We need all governments to take a stand and recognize what’s happening in Afghanistan, and Afghan girls and women deserve to know that world leaders have their backs. My hope is that ultimately, this helps to build international pressure on the Taliban and gets Afghan girls back into school where they can learn and fulfill their potential,” she said.