APT is glad to announce the selection of Zohra Wandaa as the 6th Afghan Youth Representative to the United Nations for 2026-27. The final selection round took place in Geneva, Switzerland. A distinguished panel of judges joined us in person: Mr. Ajmal Ramyar, Executive Director of APT; Dr. Suraya Dalil, Former Minister of Public Health of Afghanistan; and Ms. Atefa Tayeb, Education and Development Policy Specialists and PhD Candidate at Imperial College London. Dr. Homira Rezai, CEO of Education Bridge for Afghanistan, and Ms. Heather Barr, Associate Director – Women’s Rights Division at Human Rights Watch, joined us online.
APT opened the call for applications in April 2026 and received over a hundred applications. After careful consideration, APT selected four finalists; Hosai Ayobi, Mahshid Saber, Hilal Zakhilwal, and Zohra Wandaa. The finalists were shortlisted from different parts of the world, based on their leadership potential, their background and engagement with Afghan youth, and their commitment to human rights.
As part of the final selection, on 5th and 6th November 2026 the candidates met with organisations in Geneva, including the International Service for Human Rights (ISHR), the World Health Organization (WHO), Interpeace, UN Women, and Refugees Seeking Equal Access at the Table (R-SEAT).
