From Asser Malik to Priyanka Chopra Jonas: Malala receives heartfelt wishes on 26th birthday

The youngest Nobel Peace Prize laureate, Pakistan’s Malala Yousafzai recently celebrated her 26th birthday. Taking to Twitter, the activist shared a picture with ‘her’ girls in Nigeria, where she marked her big day as she spread awareness about their right to education. Malala also addressed the United Nations the same day. 

“Today I’m in Nigeria celebrating my birthday with girls, a tradition I started 10 years ago,” she penned. In an address to the UN in Nigeria, Malala shared the stories of some of the young women she has met over the years who have gone on to earn university degrees and even start working.

“We should celebrate the girl who goes to university, takes a job, chooses when and if she marries. But we should not deceive ourselves into thinking that we have made enough progress,” she said. “I want to cheer for those who have made it, despite the challenges they faced. But my heart aches for those who we failed. Every young woman like me has friends we saw being left behind – those whose governments, communities and families held them back.”

Malala’s husband and her family, as well, took to social media to wish her. Sharing a picture with his better half, Asser Malik penned, “Happy Birthday Malala. You don’t need any reminders of how amazing you are. But for what it’s worth you are the best partner I could have ever hoped for.”

In her powerful speech at the UN in 2013, the 16-year-old Malala famously declared that “one child, one teacher, one pen and one book can change the world.” Her youthful optimism has since been tempered.

“I will tell you today what I did not know then. One child, even with the best resources and encouragement, one child can’t change the world. Neither can one president or prime minister,” she said. “One teacher, one activist, one parent – no one can change the world on their own. What is true is that change can begin with just one person.”