New Delhi: Educate Girls has become the first Indian non-profit organisation to be named a 2025 Ramon Magsaysay Awardee, Asia’s most prestigious honour. The recognition is for “its commitment to addressing cultural stereotyping through the education of girls and young women, liberating them from the bondage of illiteracy and infusing them with skills, courage, and agency to achieve their full human potential.”
With this, Educate Girls joins a distinguished list of Indian awardees such as Satyajit Ray, M.S. Subbulakshmi, Kiran Bedi, and Vinoba Bhave, alongside global figures including the Dalai Lama, Mother Teresa, and Hayao Miyazaki.
“Being the first Indian nonprofit to receive the Ramon Magsaysay Award is a historic moment for Educate Girls and for the country. This recognition places a global spotlight on India’s people-powered movement for girls’ education, one that began with a single girl in the remotest village and grew to reshape entire communities, challenging traditions and shifting mindsets,” said Safeena Husain, Founder, Educate Girls. “This Award honours our dedicated Team Balika volunteers, valued partners, passionate gender champions, and supporters, and acknowledges the millions of girls who reclaimed their right to education. As we work to reach 10 million learners in the next decade and share this blueprint beyond India, we carry forward a simple truth that when one girl is educated, she takes others with her, multiplying change across families, generations, and nations.”
Gayatri Nair Lobo, CEO, Educate Girls, said, “At Educate Girls, we believe that education is one of the greatest levers for development. But above all, education is every girl’s fundamental and inherent right. This prestigious award recognises the transformational change that is possible through partnerships with the government, philanthropic institutions, corporations, and grassroots communities, working together to tackle societal and systemic barriers and promote equitable and accessible education for girls everywhere. We are deeply grateful to the Government of India for its phenomenal initiatives that have made this possible. Warm congratulations to our fellow awardees, Shaahina Ali and Fr. Flaviano Villanueva, whose work inspires us all.”
Founded in 2007, Educate Girls has worked across more than 30,000 villages with the support of over 55,000 community volunteers. The organisation has helped bring more than 2 million girls back to school and improved learning outcomes for 2.4 million children. Its next goal is to impact 10 million learners in the coming decade, working closely with government systems to ensure education access for girls most at risk of being excluded.
The other 2025 Ramon Magsaysay Awardees are Shaahina Ali from the Maldives, recognised for her fight against plastic pollution and marine conservation, and Fr. Flaviano Antonio L. Villanueva from the Philippines, honoured for his work in restoring dignity to the homeless in Manila.
The awards will be formally presented on November 7, 2025, at the Metropolitan Theatre in Manila, Philippines.
BI Bureau
