IWPR 2014 annual report

In 2014, Malala Yousafzai became the youngest person ever to receive the Nobel Prize for Peace. Malala joined IWPR’s Pakistan Open Minds programme at age 12 and soon became one of our peer educators and a blogger for the BBC.

The Open Minds project identified and nurtured some of Pakistan’s most promising youth leaders, including Malala, through a media training and public debating programme that taught participants to use journalism skills to gather, analyse and disseminate information. Following an assassination attempt by the Taleban, Malala continues to serve as a global advocate for girls’ education. At IWPR, her vision for educating girls and her courage and perseverance have underscored for us the potential of all of the local voices we work with around the world.

Nevertheless, it was an extremely challenging year, with the grinding war in Syria serving as the platform for the rise of Islamic State (IS), and the seizure of significant territory in both Syria and Iraq bringing dramatic humanitarian consequences. All areas controlled by the extremist movement have experienced severe restrictions on human rights, rising abuses of women and minorities, and sharp crack-downs on independent civil society and media. While the Afghan presidential vote was widely deemed a success, bringing a peaceful change of government, the year also marked the withdrawal of international troops from the country and further gains by the Taliban, with increasing security risks for non-governmental projects such as IWPR.

The collapse of central government in Libya, and the rise of IS activity there, also marked a significant deterioration in another important country for IWPR programming. Overall, and well beyond the Middle East, it was a harsh year for many independent reporters and civic voices trying to make a difference in their own countries.

Yet IWPR programmes continued in more than 30 countries and territories around the world, strengthening local media, enhancing the capacity of civil society groups and helping societies develop and drive constructive solutions to social challenges. Key results in the year included supporting and expanding an ambitious media reform programme in Rwanda, sustaining courageous frontline training and reporting efforts especially in Syria, Iraq and Libya – and continuing our youth Open Minds initiative with extensive activities around the election in Afghanistan. New programmes were also launched in Sri Lanka, Egypt, Ukraine, Sierra Leone and Nigeria. An IWPR trainee received recognition during the third Annual Journalism Excellence Awards of the Media Council in Kenya, winning commendation in the category of Good Governance Reporting