Historic! 'Educate Girls' NGO Becomes First Indian Organisation To Win Ramon Magsaysay Award, Founder Safeena Reacts

(MENAFN- Live Mint) An Indian non-profit organisation (NPO), Foundation to Educate Girls Globally, working for the education of poor girls in remote villages is among the winners of this year's Ramon Magsaysay Awards, Asia's version of the Nobel Prize .

In a statement, the Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation (RMAF) said the Foundation to Educate Girls Globally, widely known as 'Educate Girls,' has made history as the first Indian organisation to receive the award.

Educate Girls, was founded by Safeena Husain, a graduate from the London School of Economics, in 2007, has been named for Asia's highest honour.

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“its commitment to addressing cultural stereotyping through the education of girls and young women, liberating them from the bondage of illiteracy and infusing them with skills, courage, and agency to achieve their full human potential,” the RMAF said.

“Starting out in Rajasthan, Educate Girls identified the neediest communities in terms of girls' education, brought unschooled or out-of-school girls into the classroom, and worked to keep them there until they were able to acquire credentials for higher education and gainful employment,” the statement said.

In 2015, it launched the world's first Development Impact Bond (DIB) in education, aimed at tying financial aid to outcomes.“It started with 50 pilot village schools reaching over 30,000 villages across India's most under-served regions, involving over two million girls, with a retention rate of over 90 per cent,” the Foundation said.

Reflecting on the milestone, Husain said: "Being the first Indian non-profit to receive the Ramon Magsaysay Award is a historic moment for Educate Girls and for the country. This recognition places a global spotlight on India's people-powered movement for girls' education, one that began with a single girl in the remotest village and grew to reshape entire communities, challenging traditions and shifting mindsets."

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The other winners announced on Sunday were a Filipino priest Flaviano Antonio L. Villanueva and Shaahina Ali from the Maldives.

Flaviano Antonio publicly protested against then-President Rodrigo Duterte's bloody crackdown against illegal drugs despite death threats and helped provide proper funerals to slain suspects, while Shaahina, a local Maldives diver who sparked a movement to save her tropical island nation from plastic pollution with massive cleanups and recycling.

Named after a popular Philippine president, who died in a 1957 plane crash, they honor“greatness of spirit” through selfless service to people across Asia.

The winners will be presented with their awards at the 67th Ramon Magsaysay Award Presentation Ceremonies at Metropolitan Theatre in Manila on November 7.

Each awardee will receive a medallion bearing the likeness of President Ramon Magsaysay, a certificate inscribed with their citation, and a cash prize, said the statement.

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