Aqeela Asifi
Aqeela Asifi | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1966 |
| Occupation | Teacher |
| Known for | educating thousands of refugee children in Pakistan |
| Notable work | Starting the Community Girls Model School No 2 in Kot Chandna |
| Awards | Nansen Refugee Award |
Aqeela Asifi is an Afghan woman teacher who has educated thousands of refugee children in Mianwali, Pakistan.[1]
Education
Asifi trained in Afghanistan as a teacher of history and geography.[2]
Career
Asifi was forced to leave Afghanistan after the fall of Kabul to warlords and dissolution of the Republic of Afghanistan in 1992. When she arrived as a refugee at the Kot Chandna camp in Mianwali, there were no schools for refugee children. Asifi set up a school in a borrowed tent. As of 2017, there are nine schools in the camp with over 1,500 students.[3] Several of these schools are also attended by Afghan refugee girls.[4]
In 2015, Asifi was awarded the Nansen Refugee Award for her efforts in providing Afghan refugee children with an education. She has used most of her US$100,000[5] Nansen prize money to build a new school.[6] The Award honours extraordinary service to refugees.[7]
In 2017, the Community Girls Model School No 2 in Kot Chandna, started by Asifi, was recognised by the Department of Education as a higher-secondary school. It is now the first refugee school in the Punjab to be affiliated with a Board of Education.[8]
Over a period of 23 years, Asifi has taught more than 1,000 girls. In 2020 another 1,500 refugee boys and girls were enrolled in six schools.[9]
References
- ^ For refugees, education is as essential as shelter The Guardian Retrieved 24 March 2017
- ^ A life of teaching Afghan refugee girls BBC Retrieved 24 March 2017
- ^ The Global Teacher Prize website Archived 2017-06-26 at the Wayback Machine Global Teacher Prize Retrieved 24 March 2017
- ^ Amid Mass Returns, a Teacher’s Hopes for Refugee Girls in Afghanistan Archived 14 March 2017 at the Wayback Machine News Deeply Retrieved 24 March 2017
- ^ Pakistani Teacher Aqeela Asifi ranked among Top Ten Teachers of the World Daily Times Retrieved 24 March 2017
- ^ Educating Afghan refugees in Pakistan UCA News Retrieved 24 March 2017
- ^ UNHCR names Afghan refugee teacher Aqeela Asifi its 2015 Nansen Refugee Award winner UNHCR Retrieved 24 March 2017
- ^ "First ever refugee school in Punjab formally upgraded, affiliated with board - Pakistan". ReliefWeb. 26 October 2017. Retrieved 12 December 2020.
- ^ "Pakistan, world's third-largest refugee-hosting country, renews commitment to cause". Pakistan – Gulf News. 20 June 2020. Retrieved 12 December 2020.