The Malala Fund has announced the appointment of Vanessa Kingori OBE, one of Britain’s most respected tech and media executives, to its global Board of Directors. Known for rewriting narratives at the highest levels of publishing and tech, Kingori brings a rare combination of commercial intelligence, cultural insight, and deep personal conviction to an organisation fighting for one of the world’s most urgent causes: girls’ education.
This signals a strategic alignment between global advocacy and modern media leadership at a time when storytelling, policy, and digital strategy are inextricably linked in shaping public perception and structural change. For the Malala Fund, which operates in regions where girls are routinely denied access to education, having a figure like Kingori on board strengthens not just the message, but the machinery behind the movement.
Vanessa Kingori is not new to historic firsts. She became the first female publisher in the 100-year history of British GQ, and the first Black publisher at Condé Nast UK. As Chief Business Officer at Condé Nast Britain and Vogue’s European Business Advisor, she has spent her career making boardrooms more reflective of the societies they serve.
But Kingori’s leadership has never been about titles. It has always been about impact. Whether launching campaigns that spotlight underrepresented communities or building innovative commercial strategies that centre inclusion, her work has consistently pushed beyond tokenism into territory that is structural, sustainable, and sincere.
Her contributions to business and diversity were recognised in 2016 when she was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) by Her Majesty The Queen.
The Malala Fund, co-founded by Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Malala Yousafzai and her father Ziauddin, continues to advocate for a world where every girl can access 12 years of free, safe, quality education. The Fund’s global work spans over ten countries, including Nigeria, Pakistan, India, Brazil, and Ethiopia. These are not only areas of pressing need but also regions where Kingori’s work in media and tech has carried cultural resonance.
In a public statement, the Malala Fund described Kingori as a leader whose “commitment to equity and innovation” will help “amplify our mission and scale our impact.” For a foundation that already operates at the intersection of education, gender, and global policy, Kingori’s appointment strengthens its reach into industries that shape minds and markets.
Though widely recognised for her role in the corridors of media and tech, Vanessa Kingori’s motivation is rooted in a far more personal truth. As a woman of Caribbean and Kenyan heritage, educated in the UK and having navigated systems that often left girls behind, she understands both the privilege of access and the cost of exclusion.
In her own words: “Education changed the trajectory of my life. Every girl deserves that same power.”
Her addition to the Malala Fund Board brings not just experience, but empathy. It brings not just prestige, but purpose.
