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Fawzia Koofi wants to empower women and girls in her home country of Afghanistan and she will not rest until she sees change.

In a country where girls are often considered to be useless and insignificant, Fawzia is determined to become Afghanistan’s first female president and continue to positively impact the country she loves so much.

As a woman, choosing to run in the 2014 presidential election is a decision that is both inspiring and dangerous.

Despite assassination attempts, Fawzia has continued on her brave journey toward the presidency. Neither bullets nor death threats can scare off Fawzia!

It’s hard being a girl in Afghanistan. Many Afghan girls’ lives are marked by violence, hard labor, forced marriage and poor health.

Even though more Afghan girls are getting an education – more than 2 million girls are in school – a very small percentage of girls advance past elementary school. Many girls are afraid to go to school; Afghanistan extremists plan attacks on schools to terrorize girls and to keep them out of the classroom.

Enraged by a culture of violence and inequality, Fawzia spent two years working as a child-protection officer with UNICEF initiating schools for girls across Afghanistan and helping children.

Fawzia wanted to do more, and ran to be a member of Afghanistan’s Parliament. She was the first woman to be elected to her country’s Parliament and has served her people for eight years!

Now, Fawzia is pushing to make large-scale changes as the future president.

“I will not rest in my desire to lead my people out an abyss of corruption and poverty – finally see all of its children—both boys and girls—born into peace and security, not violence and war,” Fawzia said in an interview with CNN.

Fawzia’s bravery and her relentless fight for cultural progress inspire us at Girl Up. She has given a voice to the millions of women and girls in Afganistan, and that is why she is our Fab. Female this Friday!

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