China's First Lady Peng Liyuan, also United Nations Educational, Scientific and 
Cultural Organization (UNESCO) special envoy for the advancement of girls' and 
women's education, sent a congratulatory message to the award of UNESCO via a 
video on October 12. 

Video - https://cdn5.prnasia.com/202010/CGTN2/video.mp4
(Caption: Peng Liyuan sends congratulatory message to UNESCO Prize for Girls' 
and Women's Education)

Read the original article here ( 
https://news.cgtn.com/news/2020-10-12/Peng-congratulates-UNESCO-award-ceremony-for-female-education-UxbVogDOow/index.html).


In her message, Peng expressed congratulations to prize-winners from Sri Lanka 
and Kenya. In 2015, China established the Girls' and Women's Education Award 
with UNESCO, and Peng mentioned that there are millions of people who devote 
their life for the education of girls and women in China.  

Zhang Guimei is one of them. She is a female teacher who has taught in the poor 
mountainous areas of Southwest China's Yunnan Province for over 40 years. She 
established the first full-tuition-free girls high school in China, which helps 
many young girls from poverty-stricken families receive education. 

This year, 1.5 billion students have been forced to suspend classes due to the 
COVID-19 pandemic, according to Peng, and this impact on girls is particularly 
pronounced. We need to find ways to help those girls get back to school so that 
they won't be left behind due to the coronavirus pandemic. 

Sixty-three percent of illiterate adults around the world are women, said Peng, 
and the education of girls and women is of great benefit to the present and the 
future. China will continue to work with UNESCO to ensure the success of the 
Girls' and Women's Education Awards from 2021 to 2025, and make greater 
contributions to promoting girls' and women's education and achieving the 
Sustainable Development Goals, Peng added. 

Audrey Azoulay, director-general of UNESCO, thanked the Chinese government for 
supporting the establishment of Girls' and Women's Education Awards. 

The UNESCO Prize for Girls' and Women's Education honors outstanding and 
innovative contributions made by individuals, institutions and organizations to 
advance girls' and women's education. 


SOURCE: CGTN