Malala Yousafzai (For All Competitive Exams & Interviews)
🟢 Full Name: Malala Yousafzai
🟢 Date of Birth: 12 July 1997
🟢 Place of Birth: Mingora, Swat Valley, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan
🟢 Nationality: Pakistani
🟢 Known For: Education activist, especially for girls’ right to education
🟢 Father: Ziauddin Yousafzai (educationist and activist)
🟢 Mother: Toor Pekai Yousafzai
✅ Early Life & Education
- Raised in an environment that valued education despite Taliban restrictions in the Swat region.
- Began speaking out for girls’ education at a young age.
- Wrote a blog under a pseudonym for BBC Urdu in 2009 about life under Taliban rule.
✅ Assassination Attempt
- On 9 October 2012, she was shot in the head by Taliban gunmen while returning from school.
- Survived after being airlifted to the UK for treatment.
✅ Activism & Achievements
The book written by Malala Yousafzai for young children, released in October 2017, is "Malala’s Magic Pencil".
Key Points for Competitive Exams:
- Genre: Children’s picture book
- Author: Malala Yousafzai
- Illustrator: Kerascoët
- Message: Encourages children to believe in their ability to change the world through kindness, education, and courage.
- Continued her activism from the UK, becoming a global symbol for education rights.
- Co-authored the autobiography “I Am Malala” in 2013.
- Founded the Malala Fund to promote girls’ education worldwide.
✅ Nobel Peace Prize
- Awarded: 2014 Nobel Peace Prize (with Kailash Satyarthi).
- Reason: For their struggle against the suppression of children and young people and for the right of all children to education.
- Record: Youngest-ever Nobel laureate at 17.
✅ Education & Later Life
- Graduated from Oxford University in 2020 with a degree in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics (PPE).
- Continues advocacy through Malala Fund and global campaigns.
✅ Awards & Recognition
- National Youth Peace Prize (Pakistan) – 2011
- Nobel Peace Prize – 2014
- Honorary Canadian Citizenship – 2017
- Malala Yousafzai was listed in Time Magazine’s “100 Most Influential People” in 2013, 2014, and 2015.