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Indian non-profit Educate Girls has received the prestigious Ramon Magsaysay Award and dedicates the honor to the thousands of field coordinators, volunteers and youth mentors who have helped get millions of girls back to school in the country.
The award was publicly announced on August 31 and the formal ceremony took place on Friday at the Metropolitan Theater in the Philippines capital.
Founded in 2007, Educate Girls works in over 30,000 villages across Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Bihar to break the cycle of poverty and illiteracy.
With the support of more than 55,000 community-based volunteers, the nonprofit has brought more than two million girls back to school and supported more than 2.4 million children through remedial learning programs.
While accepting the award, Founder Safina Hussain said, “This award is for our girls, who inspire us with their courage, grit and resilience. Girls who manage household responsibilities and study late into the night to create a brighter future for themselves, their families and their country.”
“Through this recognition, we honor the parents, teachers, community members and 55,000 Team Girls volunteers who stand with our girls every day. Their dedication shows that when communities come together to educate girls, every girl has opportunity, choice, voice and agency.”
CEO Gayatri Nair Lobo said the honor is a reminder of the incredible power of people united by a common cause of educating girls.
“It honors our collective efforts, innovative programs and impressive government initiatives. More importantly, it boosts our ambition for the next milestone: 10X10 – reaching 10 million learners by 2035. Millions of girls around the world are still waiting for their chance to learn, and we are determined to let them wait no longer,” she said.
In presenting the honor, the Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation cited Educate Girls’ “commitment to addressing cultural stereotypes through the education of girls and young women, freeing them from the shackles of illiteracy and filling them with the skills, courage, and agency to achieve their full human potential.”
The 25-member Educate Girls team, including field coordinators, volunteers and first-generation learners, traveled to the capital of the Philippines for the awards ceremony.
Considered Asia’s equivalent of the Nobel Prize, the Ramon Magsaysay Award recognizes transformational leadership and “greatness of spirit.” Award winners are selected annually through a confidential global nomination process and rigorous assessment.
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