Malala Yousafzai, Kailash Satyarthi Win the Nobel Peace Prize

The Norwegian Peace Committee just announced that they have given the Nobel Peace Prize to Malala Yousafzai, as well as Kailash Satyarthi. Both Yousafzai and Satyarthi have championed children’s rights, in the form of education, as well as speaking out against exploitation and child labor. In the case of Malala, she has become the youngest to win the Nobel Peace Prize, at 17 years of age (CNN, 2014). According to the CNN report,  “Satyarthi told reporters that the award was about many more people than him — and that credit should go to all those “sacrificing their time and their lives for the cause of child rights” and fighting child slavery.” He went on to say that “It is a great honor for all those children who are deprived of their childhood globally,”” and that  “It’s an honor to all my fellow Indians who have got this honor — it’s not just an honor for me, it’s an honor for all those fighting against child labor globally” (CNN, 2014).

This is fantastic news, and frankly, was long overdue. Activists such as Malala and Kailash have been such critical figures in the struggle to ensure that all children have access to primary school. Malala has spoken all over the world regarding children’s education, and faced horrendous obstacles from the Taliban in Pakistan.

As we know, there are many factors that are preventing children from attending school. Often many are expected to work, or the parents do not have the money to send them to school. In addition, many schools still charge school fees, which is yet another roadblock to attending schooling. Thus, it is great that activists working on these issues have received the necessary recognition.

Let us hope that states and international organizations like the United Nations make primary education, as well as speaking out against child labor,  a top priority. With 2015 approaching, this was the year that the World Millennium Development Goals were to have been reached. Unfortunately, they are still ways away from being accomplished. Let us hope that this announcement will continue to place much needed light on the issues of child primary education throughout the world.