Malala asks international community to contribute to flood relief efforts so girls can go to school

Nobel laureate Malala returned to her home country after four years to travel to flood affected areas and visit victims of the recent floods. After inspecting the areas on ground and speaking with flood affectees, she described the situation, asking the international community to contribute so that girls impacted by the calamity can continue their education.

Two days after her arrival in Pakistan, she took to Instagram to explain the purpose of her visit on Thursday. “This week, I returned to Pakistan to visit communities and hear from young women and educators impacted by this summer’s devastating floods that destroyed an estimated 24,000 schools. Half of those were in Sindh,” she wrote. “The destruction is astounding. Some villages are still sunk under water. People are waiting for their homes, schools, hospitals and shops to be repaired and reconstructed.”

She stressed on the the psychosocial and economic impact, especially on women and girls and said, “Governments — federal and provisional — need to accelerate response and ensure people get the resources they need to survive, and to return to their lives and educations. Malala Fund has committed emergency grants to local organisations in Pakistan to support flood relief.”

Quoting a 16-year-old flood affectee named Sohaila’s story, she wrote, “‘I want to go to school, but there is so much water. If there was less water, I’d even go through it. Now we are hearing that the flood waters will stay for five months.’ She wants to be a doctor but worries she may never go back to school. I hope leaders will listen to Sohaila and every girl like her.”

She addressed the international community and said she hopes it, along with country leaders, can continue to provide emergency aid and ensure girls can safely return to school soon.

If you want to donate to flood relief efforts in Pakistan, you can also consider one of the organisations on our extensive list.