Malala Fund is proud to announce that our board has elected two new members, Dr. Modupe Adefeso-Olateju and Pearl Uzokwe.
Malala Fund is proud to announce that our board has elected two new members, Dr. Modupe Adefeso-Olateju and Pearl Uzokwe. As experts in international development, law and gender policy, Modupe and Pearl will help guide our efforts championing girls’ education around the world.
"In the next five years, Malala Fund wants to see more girls in school, better financing for education and more young women in decision-making spaces. To guide us in this work, we are growing and building a board that brings enhanced representation of thought and lived experience to our mission,” says Malala Yousafzai, Co-founder and Board Chair. “Modupe and Pearl are committed to building a better world for girls and I am honoured for them to bring their perspectives and talents to Malala Fund."
Modupe is Managing Director of The Education Partnership Centre and Programme Director of LEARNigeria. She advises education sector policymakers and trains public officials and development organisations on strategic planning and monitoring and evaluation. She also serves on the Advisory Committee of the Brookings Institution Center for Universal Education’s Millions Learning programme and is an Advisory Board Member of the People’s Action for Learning Network in Kenya.
“I believe the girl child is a blessing and within her lie seeds of greatness. Where she was born and to whom she was born to should not constrain her capabilities. When we work together intentionally and in the spirit of our shared humanity, we help girls the world over unleash their immense potential to transform our world for the better,” says Modupe.
Pearl is the Director for Governance and Sustainability at Sahara Group Limited in Nigeria. As a qualified solicitor and member of the Law Society of England and Wales, Pearl previously worked on the legal team at Sahara Group and supported its international growth. Pearl has also worked with the Crown Agents supporting the Department for International Development (DFID), as well as with donor country governments like France, South Africa and the U.K. and private nonprofits like the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Emerging Africa Infrastructure Fund.
“Having witnessed firsthand the far-reaching divergence of trajectories that educating versus not educating the girl child can have, I am driven to ensure that a collective and collaborative approach is taken to ensure that as many girls as possible are offered this priceless opportunity. Educating the girl child is a critical component for development and I am incredibly honored and excited to be joining Malala Fund with its clear mission, targeting just that,” says Pearl.
Pearl and Modupe join Malala Fund’s existing board which includes our co-founders Malala and Ziauddin Yousafzai, as well as Akhter Mateen, Alaa Murabit, Fayeeza Naqvi, Françoise Moudouthe, Lynn Taliento and Susan McCaw.
To learn more about our current board leadership, visit malala.org/board.
