International relief and development organization Oxfam congratulated children’s rights activists Malala Yousafzai and Kailash Satyarthi who were announced today as recipients of the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize.
"Oxfam offers its heartfelt congratulations to Malala and Kailash for winning the Nobel Peace Prize,” said Oxfam International Executive Director, Winnie Byanyima. “Their fearless and tireless campaigning for education is legendary.”
The plight and efforts of Malala Yousafzai, a Pakistani teenager shot by the Taliban after campaigning for girls’ education, has moved and inspired millions of people around the world. Kailash Satyarthi has been a leading voice in the fight against child trafficking and forced labor in India for decades. In 1999, Kailash joined Oxfam, ActionAid and leaders of the international federation of teachers’ unions Education International to create the Global Campaign for Education, which has since become the world’s biggest civil society education movement. And while the fight to get every child in school over the last decade has seen many millions of girls and boys get to go to school for the first time, many millions more are still out of school, from Syria to South Sudan.
“Education is the most powerful weapon to fight growing inequality but in recent years donor countries have made shameful cuts in their support to education,” continued Byanyima. “The world must redouble its efforts to ensure every child gets to finish school.”