Zolfeqar Adebi
Education is the most powerful tool for change, teaching, mentoring, and inspiring children today builds the leaders of tomorrow.
Zolfeqar Adebi (17), was born into poverty in Bamiyan, Afghanistan, and faced hardship from an early age—working as a shepherd, enduring displacement to Daikundi due to family conflict, and living through insecurity and educational disruption. These experiences taught him early how easily children can lose access to safety, dignity, and education.
Zolfeqar worked one shift as a shepherd while studying during the other, and publicly challenged child labor in his village, insisting children belonged in classrooms. His voice first reached a wider audience through Bamiyan Radio, spreading his message about education beyond his community. After his family became homeless and was displaced to Daikundi in 2014-2015, he kept advocating rather than giving up, and from 2014 to 2020, his speeches were shared by KACSO teachers on Facebook and local leaders, reaching thousands across Afghanistan.
Even after the Taliban took over in 2021, Zolfeqar continued speaking out for education and gender equality, despite the serious personal danger involved—showing remarkable courage in the face of real risk, supported throughout by his family and a trusted network of allies.
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