Every year since 2013, July 12 is observed as Malala Day to honour education activist Malala Yousafzai, the young girl who became an international symbol for the fight for girls’ education after she was shot in 2012 for opposing Taliban restrictions on female education in her home country of Pakistan.
This year, as the United Nations Messenger of Peace, Malala spent the day, her 26th birthday, in Maiduguri in northeastern Nigeria, where she emphasised the need for all girls to get an education.
Malala was speaking exactly 10 years after her landmark “Malala Day” address to youth at the UN headquarters in New York, where she called for global action against illiteracy, poverty and terrorism.
As an education advocate, Malala is passionate about the need for girls to be educated and says “education is not an optional right for girls – it is a fundamental human right”.
While in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State, Malala said: “I am here in Nigeria to celebrate my 26th birthday. Since my UN speech at the age 16, I have been going around the world, meeting girls from different parts of the world and raising awareness about the issues that girls face.
“We know that there are more than 120 million girls in the world who do not have access to education right now and, just as people spoke out about my education, I want them to think about the education of other girls as well.
“In Nigeria, I am here because girls’ education is important here; it will determine the future of Nigeria.
“I would ask here that the federal and all state governments make a commitment to ensure that every child in Nigeria has access to a complete education, including senior secondary education and even tertiary education. That every child has access to free and quality education.
“The second thing I ask is that they make a full financial commitment to ensure that no child is left behind in this country.’’
Malala said she was concerned about safety, security and the lack of investment in girls’ education. She highlighted the importance of continued efforts to address the challenges to ensure that girls had equal opportunities for education.
After her visit to Maiduguri, Malala flew to Nigeria’s capital city, Abuja, where UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed introduced her to Vice-President Kashim Shettima.
She said Malala had transcended borders, cultures and generations and her message and passion had touched people everywhere.
“Malala keeps daring us to imagine: to imagine a world with less intolerance, more understanding and respect. A world of less hate and more humanity. A world of less bigotry and more equality. A world of less ignorance, and more education and knowledge.”
Mohammed said that both the UN and Malala knew that quality education for both girls and boys “is not a dream, it’s a fundamental human right”.
Malala has made three trips to Nigeria, holding meetings with activists and young women, and spending time with the parents whose daughters were among the 276 girls abducted in the Chibok school kidnapping in 2014.
“We should celebrate the girl who goes to university, takes a job, chooses when and if she marries. But we should not deceive ourselves into thinking that we have made enough progress,” Malala said.
“I want to cheer those who have made it, despite the challenges they faced. But my heart aches for those who we failed. Every young woman like me has friends we saw being left behind – those whose governments, communities and families held them back.”
Some children in Maiduguri’s Malam Umairi Fulatari community camp for internally displaced persons (IDPs) told RNI how they longed to go to school.
Hadiza Mohammed, a 13-year-old, said she spent her days hawking goods, farming and fetching firewood in the forest to support her parents to get something to eat.
“I want to acquire knowledge on both Western and Islamic education but my parents can’t afford to enrol me in school. We have been living in this camp since we left our hometown in the Marte Local Government Area because of the Boko Haram [Jamā’at Ahl as-Sunnah lid-Da’way Wa’l-Jihād – JAS] insurgency. We are poor and face many hardships and challenges.
“My wish is for the federal and Borno State governments – as well as non-governmental organisations [NGOs] – to support children like me so that we have access to education. We should get free uniforms, books and other school materials. I would give anything for the chance to go to school to have a brighter future like other teenage girls.”
Fatima Wa’abe, who is 15, said her hope of going to school was shattered when her father was killed by insurgents.
“My father died when I was little and all our wealth – such as our cattle, our properties and other belongings – was destroyed by Boko Haram insurgents. My mother, my siblings and I have been destitute and hopeless since then. If we don’t get help from the government, NGOs and philanthropists in the society, we will never go to school. Our future looks bleak.”
Rabi Sani is 13. She and her family were forced to flee from Monguno, where she attended school, because of the insurgency.
She said since moving to the camp she had not gone to school.
“I really want to go to school but I there is no one who will sponsor my education. My father is dead and my relatives are not financially able to support us. I’m pleading with the government to enrol out-of-school children like me so that we can get an education.”
Mohammadu Ali, the leader of the Malam Umairi Fulatari IDP camp, said one of the biggest challenges was the issue of children’s education.
“Both boys and girls do not have access to education because their parents do not have sustainable ways to make a living and cannot afford to enrol their kids in schools. They struggle to put food on the table and sometimes they cannot even do that and they just go hungry.”
Ali urged the government and humanitarian agencies to help sponsor education, particularly girl children’s education.
“As parents we don’t want the future of our sons and daughters to be dark. We don’t want them to lament the lack of proper education.”
Borno State governor Babagana Umara Zulum thanked the UN and the Malala Foundation for their support, particularly for renovating 27 classrooms, building a 400-bed hostel for girls and providing scholarships to more than 700 girls in four local government areas.
Zulum said the state government had enrolled 500,000 girls in public schools in the past four years and had pledged to work in partnership with the Malala Foundation to enrol more girls in schools and provide them with the opportunities of realising their full potential.
SHETTIMA LAWAN MONGUNO
