As a part of their joint initiative "Women For Education", the Women’s Forum and the ELLE Foundation, with the support of ELLE magazine, Renault Nissan and Aide & Action, have decided to create an annual award.

The aim is to reward a leading figure and an outstading action implemented to promote education and training of women and girls all around the world.

A theme will be chosen each year :

• Peace and conflicts prevention
• Health
• Democracy
• Etc.

This year, the Women’s Forum and the ELLE Foundation have chosen to support the strongest projects from NGO, whose aim it is to give young women access to cutting-edge technologies and enable them to gain a strong and effective foothold in the society and economy of their country. The award ceremony will take place during the 4th edition of the Women’s Forum Global Meeting, in Deauville.

Afghanistan Libre, the NGO chaired by Chekeba Hachemi, received the prize in 2007.
The programme awarded will be implemented during 2 years and allow the following activities:

• Creation of new fields of vocational training (journalism, IT, management and accountancy) in the Khoja Lakan and Azrat Osman
• Improvement of the educational environment thanks to the construction of 11 classrooms at Khoja Lakan and refurbishment of a library for both schools;
• Awareness programme focusing on the importance of educating girls, the prevention of forced marriages and the professional opportunities opened to female graduated;
• On going training of teachers and creation of nurseries for their children.

See the 2008 media campaign [English, French]
For more information: www.ellefondation.org, www.elle.fr, www.aide-et-action.org