Malala Yousafzai became an international symbol of the fight for girls' education after she was shot by the Taliban in 2012. In 2014, the female education activist was awarded a Nobel Peace Prize in honour of her outspoken fight against the suppression of young children.
In 2013, Malala and her father co-founded the Malala Fund to help expand girls' access to education around the world. Their mission is to ensure that every girl receives 12 years of free, safe, quality education, especially in countries affected by conflict and disaster.
But there's one person in particular that Malala is keen to shine a light on. Let us introduce you to her close friend, Vee Kativhu, who has worked tirelessly to empower thousands of disadvantaged students.
"When she came to the UK from Zimbabwe as a child. She did not speak English, struggled in school, and did part time jobs after class to support her family. Yet with all that stacked against her, she succeeded. She received her undergraduate degree from Oxford, her master's from Harvard, and was recently accepted to a PhD program," Malala revealed at HELLO!'s exclusive Inspiration Awards.
"She has taken hundreds of thousands of young people on this journey with her to her YouTube channel, helping disadvantaged students in how to prepare for their exams, apply for colleges, and do well in their studies."
She added: "She's published a book to empower students to believe in themselves, [and] just last month, the United Nations named her as a young leader for the Sustainable Development Goals."
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