India’s Educate Girls wins Ramon Magsaysay Award for helping dropouts return to school

Indian non-profit Educate Girls has received the prestigious Ramon Magsaysay Award and dedicated the honour to thousands of field coordinators, volunteers and youth mentors who have helped bring millions of girls in the country back to school.

The award was publicly announced on August 31, and the formal ceremony took place on Friday at the Metropolitan Theatre here in the Philippines' capital city. Founded in 2007,

Educate Girls works across more than 30,000 villages in Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Bihar to break cycles of poverty and illiteracy.

With support from over 55,000 community-based volunteers, the non-profit has brought more than two million girls back to school and supported over 2.4 million children through remedial learning programmes.

While accepting the award, Founder Safeena Husain said, "This award is for our girls, who inspire us with their courage, grit, and resilience. Girls who manage household responsibilities and study late into the night to build brighter futures for themselves, their families and their country.

CEO Gayatri Nair Lobo said the honour was a reminder of the incredible power of people coming together, united by one purpose to educate girls.