Afghan civil activist awarded the 2015 Madeleine K. Albright award

Khalida Noori, one of Afghan civil activists in Kandahar province who works for women’s rights awarded the 2015 Madeleine K. Albright.

The Afghan lady awarded Madeleine K. Albright by the by the National Democratic Institute (NDI) which is based in Washington.

Noori is an Afghan civil activist who works to defend women’s rights in one of the insecure provinces of Afghanistan; Kandahar province.

“I support all Afghan women, they are worthy of any honor,” Malden Albright said.

Afghanistan First Lady Rula Ghani who also attended the grant presentation event in Washington and gave her remarks about Afghan women.

“We should see Farkhunda’s murder case. With gathering, demonstrations, Afghan women showed that they are against any violence,” Rula Ghani said.

Zalmai Khalil Zad, former US ambassador to Afghanistan also said to consider women’s role in Afghanistan significant.

“However, Afghanistan still faces many challenges but efforts are underway for women and their rights in the country,” Khalil zad noted.

Madeleine Albright was the first woman became to represent the U.S. in foreign affairs as the secretary of state and an award named from her name.

NDI Chairman Madeleine K. Albright, the former U.S. Secretary of State, was the founding vice-chairman of NDI before her election as chairman of the Institute in January 2001. NDI established the Madeleine K. Albright Grant to recognize the contribution she has made in educating and improving the lives of women across the globe.

The Grant supports organizations that create greater roles for women in political and civic life. It is part of NDI’s Win with Women Global Initiative, which promotes women’s political leadership worldwide. Political leaders from more than 100 countries have become part of the Initiative.

The Madeleine K. Albright Grant is made possible by the generosity of the Melvin and Bren Simon Foundation. NDI is deeply grateful to the Foundation for its steadfast commitment to the Institute’s political participation programs for women.

Earlier, in the adverse condition of Afghanistan, President Ashraf Ghani awarded the Distinguished International Leadership Award, the Atlantic Council’s highest honor, at a reception co-hosted with the NATO Allied Command Transformation in the U.S.

President Ghani has previously served on the international advisory board of Atlantic Council, a renowned think tank in the field of international affairs.
Reported by Nazira Azim Karimi