Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai returned to her hometown in Pakistan’s Swat Valley on Saturday, nine years after she was shot in the head and airlifted for treatment. Malala was just 11 years old when she was attacked and it would take some years before 1o people were sentenced to life jail for the attempted murder. Roads leading to Malala’s childhood home in Mingora were blocked off preparatory to the visit while government and military are providing her security.
“I miss everything about Pakistan … from the rivers, the mountains, to even the dirty streets and the garbage around our house, and my friends and how we used to have gossip …to how we used to fight with our neighbors,” she told Reuters in an interview on Friday. Malala incurred the wrath of Talibans for advocating for child education.
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In 2014, Malala became the youngest Nobel laureate, honored for her work with the Malala Foundation, a charity she set up to support education advocacy groups with a focus on Pakistan, Nigeria, Jordan, Syria and Kenya.
Newsbreak.ng recalls the child’s and women’s activist visited Nigeria in July 2017 and met with schoolchildren in a camp for displaced families and secondary school girls at Yerwa Government Girls School.
She said during the visit: “Nigeria is the richest country in Africa, but has more girls out of school than any country in the world.
“Studies are clear — educating girls grows economies, reduces conflict and improves public health. For these girls and for their country’s future, Nigeria’s leaders must immediately prioritise education.”
