Today, July 12,2015, Malala Yousafzai,a courageous advocate for universal education and girls’ rights turns 18years of age.
Malala’s birthday is tagged Malala day, to celebrate her brave activism that led to the attack of the Taliban in October,2015 where she was shot along side two other girls in their school bus. According to Malala,it is also a day for all children everywhere to raise their voices and be heard. ‘It is a day to stand up for education and say to world that we are stronger than the enemies of education and stronger than the forces that threaten girls, boys and women from leading happy and productive lives’. The shooting, Malala was flown from her home in Pakistan to the UK to recover. Malala is now back at school and continues to campaign for every child’s right to education.
For her 18th birthday, Malala continued to take actions for global education to the world’s priority. Learn more about Malala Day through her official website; www.malala.org
July 12, 2013 was Malala’s 16th birthday, the global community came together to highlight the leading role that youth can play in enabling all children to get an education to mark Malala day. Malala marked the day by giving her first public speech since the shooting dedicated to the importance of universal education at the United Nations Headquarters in New York.
In support of the UN Secretary-General’s Global Education First Initiative, international youth leaders convened at the United Nations and in cities around the world in support of reaching the goal of having all children, especially girls, in school and learning by 2015.