On the morning of September 28, 2023, Peng Liyuan, wife of President Xi Jinping and UNESCO Special Envoy for the Advancement of Girls' and Women's Education, and UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay attended the award ceremony of 2023 UNESCO Prize for Girls' and Women's Education in Beijing, and delivered remarks respectively.

Peng Liyuan and Audrey Azoulay first jointly presented the awards to the representatives of the China Children and Teenagers' Fund and the Pakistan Alliance for Girls Education.

Peng Liyuan said in her remarks that China's close cooperation with UNESCO, especially in establishing the Girls' and Women's Education Prize, has set a good example, provided valuable experience, and played an exemplary role in the development of girls' and women's education across the globe. In today's world, girls' and women's education faces new situations, new requirements, and new challenges. She expressed the hope that all parties would increase input and support, and actively develop women-oriented health education, digital education, and science education, so as to help more women improve their health, enhance their ability to innovate and start businesses, and find the "golden key" to creating a happy life in the new era. She also expressed the hope that more people would devote themselves to the cause of girls' and women's education to help more women transform their lives and realize their life value through education. Peng Liyuan said that China attaches great importance to ensuring women's equal right to education and stands ready to work with other parties to promote exchanges and cooperation among the international community and advance the high-quality development of girls' and women's education across the globe.

In her remarks, Audrey Azoulay thanked the Chinese government for its strong support for UNESCO over the years, and thanked Professor Peng Liyuan for her outstanding contributions to promoting girls' and women's education across the globe. She said that UNESCO is ready to continue strengthening cooperation with China to further promote the development of girls' and women's education worldwide.

The Prize for Girls' and Women's Education is UNESCO's sole award in the field of promoting girls' and women's education. China's Spring Bud Project and Pakistan's Star Schools Program won the prize this year.

About 300 people, including representatives of UN agencies in Beijing, envoys of relevant countries to China, representatives of teachers and students of Chinese schools, and representatives of women's communities, were present at the event.

Prior to the award ceremony, Peng Liyuan met with Audrey Azoulay. The two sides had an exchange of views on promoting the development of girls' and women's education worldwide.