Knowledge is power and through education knowledge is gained. Education is a basic human right. It is essential as it promotes the development and empowerment of individuals around the world. Education allows children to develop their personalities, their abilities, and their talents. Many across the world are deprived of this basic right because of poverty and some are deprived because of oppressive systems that will not allow them to be educated. The United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef) estimates a whopping 67 million children are still being denied basic education. The number is jolting. Free primary education is a dream for many children in the world. Many families are incapable of educating their children.
In October 2012, there were many headlines that shook the world about this child who was shot in the head by the Pakistani Taliban for a simple reason: Requesting that girls had the right to education. Malala Yousufzai was attacked at the age of 14 and has been transferred to the UK by the UAE for treatment.
Malala, whose name in Urdu stands for courage and bravery, has shown courage and bravery when she started a diary about her life under the Taliban; the diary stirred anger that led the Taliban to shoot her in the head. The UAE quickly responded by sending an air ambulance that transferred her to Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham, UK, where she fully recovered.
The case of Malala is quite unique and it is a first in which a child breaks that silence and speaks out loudly in a very horrific environment such as that brought about by the Taliban. She is a true reflection of her name. Her courage is to be applauded because it wasn’t easy and it is certainly rare. She has put the spotlight on an issue that many of us didn’t really imagine: the magnitude of the negative social attitudes towards gender that contribute to discrimination.
Malala started her own fund — The Malala Fund — aimed at stemming the dropout rate of adolescent girls from secondary education, strengthening women’s literacy programmes, and giving new momentum to the question of providing access to school for all girls by 2015. The Fund has received a lot of financial support worldwide and especially from the UAE for its firm belief in children’s right to education.
Malala and her family visited the UAE recently to show appreciation for all the support they have received in the past several months. They were received by General Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, along with members of the ruling family and several government officials. The visit was a very warm one when Malala spoke openly about the struggles of children’s education in her country.
Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed strongly believes that every child has the right to an education. It isn’t a privilege — it is simply a right. He has supported Malala throughout her suffering by undertaking the expenses of her treatment because he believes in her cause. His support is the reinforcement to the commitment to rejecting ideologies that feed on extremism, oppression, and intolerance. Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed continues to inspire us all through his gestures in the world guided by the steps of our founding father the late Shaikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan (may his soul rest in peace) who has set the foundation for the empowerment of women in the country by removing all hurdles in their path to progress.
The tangible role of Her Highness Shaikha Fatima Bint Mubarak, Mother of the Nation, is also touched by every Emirati female in every area of our lives. She has undoubtedly been the backbone of remarkable progress for females in the areas of education, politics, business, social, and many other fields.
The UAE has taken steps in supporting its most valuable resources — it’s people and has paid the utmost attention to the most valuable of all resources: the children. The country always ensures that they are on top of the priority list when creating new policies or changing existing ones, especially when it comes to those related to education because the UAE truly believes that the right to education is a human right. It is a universal right across all nations.
Steering change
Malala, although a child, has shown the world that she was capable of steering change. She was able to move beyond the very hard and challenging circumstances. She stands as an excellent example to other children in oppressed regions around the world who are suffering due to regimes that are backward.
She has portrayed positive and enduring change. Her fund will nurture the next generation of girls who will carry the torch of transformation for change in the region. She was courageous enough to survive a bullet in her head. I am a strong believer that this Nobel Peace Prize nominee will be able to overcome more challenges in the future given the right support.
We are building nations, and the building blocks are through the personal development of people. The foundation starts with their basic right to having access to education. One building block after another, we will have a solid building that will help take the world further through prosperity and success. It is only through adequate education that we can make a positive difference in the world.
Shaikha Al Maskari is an Emirati writer from Abu Dhabi. You can follow her on Twitter at www.twitter.com/uaeyah
