A Nigerian girl, one of the 5 activists who joined Malala Yousafzai in collecting her Nobel Peace Prize in 2014, vows not to stop the battle.
Amina Yusuf, aged 18, is advocating for girl-child education in Nigeria, The Cable recalls. In particular, she is a mentor for young girls at the Center for Girls’ Education (CGE) in northern Nigeria, Time adds.
Amina vowed to continue drawing attention of the world to the problems of her country.
She confessed though to being scared like any other Nigerian girl. The Chibok abduction, dating back to April 14, 2014, has brought fear to every house.
“I want world leaders to consider attacks on girls’ education. Insurgency in Nigeria means that there is fear in my community and fear for girls’ safety. Before now, we all thought that school was the safest place but now it’s scary. I’ve heard that many girls in boarding schools have been taken out by their parents or organisations for security reasons. People are scared that their girls may be abducted too. I know that I’m scared too, but it won’t stop me from doing what I aspire to do. People weren’t able to stop Malala, and they can’t stop me.”
Amina praised Malala, who became the youngest Nobel Piece Prize winner, and narrated how she was impressed by the Pakistani’s position:
“While I was there (Oslo, Sweden) I realised that Malala’s award means that girls all over the world – including here in Nigeria – have won the Nobel Peace Prize. Malala’s voice is the voice of every girl in the world, and many girls tell me that because she invited me to join her in Oslo, they see Malala in me.”
Speaking about her activities, Amina said she became the CGE mentor “to give more girls opportunities. If it weren’t for that, maybe I would have been married off by my parents because they wouldn’t have been able to pay for my education.
“I now mentor 15 girls, aged between 11 and 14, and assist one of the senior CGE mentors. My friends and all my younger brothers and sisters call me Malala now!”