The BBC has released a list of the 100 of exceptional and most influential women in the world for 2021. The list highlights 100 strong women who did not give up despite difficulties and decided to start life again.
Among the named women are the youngest Nobel Prize-winner Malala Yousafzai, Pakistani disability rights activist Abia Akram, author of the famous Turkish novel “the forty rules of love” Elif Safak, and Samoa’s first female Prime Minister Fayme Nomi Matafa.
Malala Yousafzai, the world’s youngest person to win the Nobel Peace Prize, is a Pakistani social activist working for women’s education and the UN ambassador for peace. She has been advocating for women’s right to education since she was 11 years old.
Malala began her activism by writing a blog for BBC Urdu, which focused on restrictions on women’s access to education in Taliban-held areas of Pakistan. Because of her work, she was attacked by armed militants in October 2012 in Swat when she was only 15.
Miraculously, she survived the bullet in her head and spent several months recovering in the Queen Elizabeth hospital in Birmingham. She is currently working for her organization, the Malala Fund, which aims to create a world where every girl can study without fear.
“Even today millions of girls cannot go to school. I want to see a world where every girl has access to free, safe and quality education for 12 years. A world where girls can learn and lead,” Malala said about her mission.
Abia Akram, a Pakistani disability rights activist is the other Pakistani woman in BBC’s list of 100. Bound to a wheelchair due to genetic rickets, she is a leading figure of disability rights movement in the country as well as in Asia. She is also the founder of the National Forum of Women with Disabilities in Pakistan.
According to BBC, these women are playing leading role in shaping the society, culture and trends of the world. The most striking feature about this year’s list is inclusion of 50 Afghan women in a total of 100. However, many of these Afghan women are mentioned anonymously or under fake identities for their safety.
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