The Pakistani education activist will become the youngest #NMAL speaker.

The 21st lecture is set to be held on 5 December, which coincides with the tenth anniversary of Madiba’s passing.

The event will take place in Johannesburg.

“Malala embodies the type of leadership we believe the world needs across all levels of society. In the face of current global challenges, which can seem daunting, she stands as an inspiring symbol of hope for a just and equitable future,” said Nelson Mandela Foundation acting CE, Verne Harris.

Malala Yousafzai became an international symbol of the fight for girls’ education after she was shot in 2012 for opposing Taliban restrictions on female education in her home country of Pakistan.

 In 2009, Malala began writing a blog under a pseudonym about the increasing military activity in her home town and about fears that her school would be attacked. 

After her identity was revealed, Malala and her father, Ziauddin, continued to speak out for the right to education.

The Taliban’s attack on Malala on 9 October 2012, as she was returning home from school with her friends, received worldwide condemnation.

In 2013, Malala and her father co-founded the Malala Fund to bring awareness to the social and economic impact of girls' education and to empower girls to demand change. 

In December 2014, she became the youngest-ever Nobel Peace Prize laureate.