The Shirin Pandju Merali Foundation: Partnering for Girls' Education

Through a generous donation from the Shirin Pandju Merali Foundation, established by Pandju Merali in honor of his late wife, Shirin Merali, The Asia Foundation is supporting two scholarship programs that will enable 200 poor young women in Pakistan and 60 Mongolian women to attain university degrees. In Mongolia, the program will provide four-year scholarships to 60 women at two prestigious public universities in Ulaanbaatar: National University of Mongolia (NUM) and Mongolian University of Science and Technology (MUST). The program in Mongolia will enroll 48 women in hard-science bachelor's degree programs and 12 in social science bachelor's degree programs. In Pakistan, The Asia Foundation is launching a scholarship program that will enable young Pakistani women—"Merali Scholars"—to pursue undergraduate studies at eight highly respected colleges and universities in Pakistan. The Asia Foundation will enroll 66 women in hard-science degree programs, 67 women in medical degree programs, and 67 women in engineering degree programs.

Mr. Merali's lack of formal education fueled his commitment to supporting education for young women throughout the developing world—making their dreams of attaining a university education come true.

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Nonprofits & Activism

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