Malala Fund’s new project Girls’ Vision for Education, aims to reveal how young women and girls around the world might reimagine and redefine secondary education if given the chance.
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. The central piece of the project is a consultation that was co-created with young women leaders. We were thrilled to appoint three Malala Fund Girl Programme Fellows as Girls’ Vision Leads: Meti T. Gemechu, Dr. Ayesha Kareem and Tamilore Omojola. It also had a separate steering committee of young women that helped finalise the design of the project, conduct background research, pilot and implement workshops and response analysis.
Meti wrote about her experience working on Girls’ Vision for Assembly. “I’ve seen firsthand the passion, creativity and resilience that girls bring to the table when they’re engaged in a way that is meaningful and thought out,” she explained. “This project has reaffirmed my belief that when we learn to meet girls where they are and empower them meaningfully, we empower entire communities.” The hope is for girls’ opinions to help shape global education policy.
To gather girls’ thoughts, Malala Fund worked with partners to organise young women-led consultations with other girls in their communities. Through this process, almost 800 adolescent girls and young women from 30 countries added their ideas and opinions to the project. Many of them have experience confronting barriers to their education.
“It’s really striking that when we asked girls and young women how they would reimagine education, most of them highlighted an ongoing denial of their rights. Girls desperately need education to be free and to be safe on the way to and in school. They need menstrual hygiene products and facilities.” says Carron Mann, Research and Policy Manager at Malala Fund. “Girls and young women told us that they want their education to help them choose their own futures — to get jobs, to be leaders, to support other girls. Until governments and world leaders listen to girls and take action, barriers around poverty, safety and inequality will continue to deny girls’ their rights and exclude them from education.”
Malala Fund expects to share findings early next year. We want girls’ perspective to inform the processes and policies that impact them, and hope Girls’ Vision can be a resource that helps shape more equitable, responsive and effective school systems.
To join us in celebrating International Day of the Girl, we invite you to take action and support girls’ futures. Here are a few ways you can do that:
Listen to girls. From organising to call for more inclusion in decision making spaces to advocating to end gender apartheid, young women are leading the charge for a fairer future and making their demands known. You can foster channels of communications between young women and decision-makers, like government officials and community leaders, so they can be heard on the issues that affect them most.
Speak up. Use your platform to amplify girls’ demands. Support policies and initiatives that reflect the needs and aspirations voiced by young women. Hold leaders accountable to incorporating girls’ perspectives into their decision-making processes and to delivering on their promises to girls.
Fund girls’ work and priorities. Girls want to live in a world where they are free to learn and lead. Through advocacy and grantmaking, Malala Fund is working to break down the barriers that hold girls back. Our funding helps innovative organisations and young-women led movements dedicated to making the world better for girls. Help further their work by donating to Malala Fund.
