Frances Uchenna Igwilo

When no other parents in their community sent their daughters to school, Frances’ mother made sure Frances completed her education, refusing relatives’ efforts to force her daughter into an early marriage. Inspired by her mother’s example, Frances now champions other girls’ right to learn as youth programme coordinator at the African Centre for Leadership, Strategy and Development (Centre LSD).

With her Malala Fund grant, Frances hosts town hall meetings in northern Nigeria to teach local leaders and families the value of educating girls and discuss how to improve washroom facilities at schools. She also runs peer clubs where girls can share their experiences, develop leadership skills and learn how to advocate for safe, quality education.

On a national level, with the Nigerian chapter of the Malala Fund Education Champion Network, Frances meets with government officials to encourage them to pass an amendment to the UBE Act that would extend the free, compulsory education provision from nine years to 12 years and improve states’ access to UBE funds.

The chapter is also researching the effects of hidden education fees — for books, school meals, transportation, security and other costs — on families and how much additional funding is needed for schools to function without collecting fees from students. The Nigerian Education Champions plan to use their research to convince the governors of Kaduna and Borno states to provide sufficient education funding, eliminating all hidden fees by 2023.