ABU DHABI, Jan 19 (Agencies) – The Zayed Award for Human Fraternity has named the historic peace agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan and Afghan girls’ education advocate Zarqa Yaftali as the honourees of its 2026 edition, the UAE state news agency WAM reported on Sunday.
The award marks the first time recipients have been selected from the Caucasus and Afghanistan, respectively. The Agreement on Establishment of Peace and Inter-State Relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan was recognised as a process of peace, dialogue, normalisation and conflict resolution aimed at ending decades of conflict and humanitarian suffering in the Caucasus, WAM said.
Yaftali was honoured for her lifelong dedication to protecting the right to education for women and children, including providing educational resources, psychosocial support and community-based services to more than 100,000 people in Afghanistan and beyond.
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan called the award a “great honour” and said the recognition would contribute to strengthening trust between Armenia and Azerbaijan, according to WAM. He said the achievement was the result of collective work and noted that sharing the award reflected a mutual and collective achievement.
Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev expressed appreciation for the recognition of the peace agreement and thanked the 2026 judging committee for honouring efforts to establish peace in the South Caucasus and globally, WAM reported.
Yaftali said she felt deeply excited and overwhelmed, adding that the recognition carried a powerful message of hope and encouragement for women in Afghanistan, particularly students in online schools and young women enrolled in peace, security and leadership courses.
The 2026 honourees were selected by an independent global judging committee comprising former European Council president Charles Michel, former African Union Commission chair Moussa Faki Mahamat, UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell, Saida Mirziyoyeva of Uzbekistan, Cardinal José Tolentino de Mendonça of the Holy See and Judge Mohamed Abdelsalam, Secretary-General of the Zayed Award for Human Fraternity.
The recipients will be honoured on Feb. 4, 2026, the UN-recognised International Day of Human Fraternity, at a ceremony at the Founder’s Memorial in Abu Dhabi, WAM said.
