On December 8, an award ceremony was held in Tampere, Finland. The International Gender Equality Prize 2025, awarded every two years by the Finnish government to celebrate outstanding achievements in the fight for gender equality worldwide. This year, the winner of this prestigious international human rights award was the Ukrainian Masha Foundation. Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo personally presented the award to the foundation’s co-founders, Maria Efrosinina and Oksana Nechyporenko. And this is an unprecedented event, because for the first time in the history of the International Gender Equality Prize, a public organization from Ukraine received the award.
For over 5 years, the Masha Foundation has been tirelessly opposinggender-based violence, and since the beginning of the full-scale invasion has focused on supporting women and children affected by the war. During this time, the foundation’s team has provided psychological assistance to over 21,000 women and children, including those who have lost their loved ones, survived Russian captivity, or were victims of sexual and domestic violence.
“As a public figure and artist, I often meet Ukrainian women. And wherever I go, women who have received assistance from the Masha Fund approach me. They are everywhere: in every city of Ukraine, abroad, on the battlefield,” says Masha Efrosinina, co-founder of the Masha Fund. “The other day, a woman came tome with the following words, ‘Maria, thanks to your foundation, my son is alive’.” Our specialists timely discovered that her teenage son was planning suicide due to depression. Today, their problem is behind them, and every story like this makes me happy and gives me the strength not to stop. I am grateful to everyone for their trust.”
The Finnish government highly appreciated the Masha Fund’s systematic work in protecting women’s rights, providing access to psychological assistance, and implementing stabilization programs. It also emphasized the transparency of activities and the effectiveness of projects that allowed thousands of women and children to feel inner peace again and regain control over their lives.
“This award is a ray of light in these dark times, hands reaching out to support and embrace us. It’s a feeling of pride and support. And a feeling of boundless gratitude to everyone who made this possible,” adds Oksana Nechyporenko, co-founder of the Masha Fund.
This award is a symbol of international recognition of the contribution of the Masha Fund to the struggle for equality and psychological resilience of women and children in wartime. And a valuable bonus to the honorary status of the laureate of the International Gender Equality Prize 2025 is a grant in the amount of 300 thousand euros, which will become a real investment in the mental health of our indomitable women.
“With the funds received, we will continue to support families affected by the war. The Unbreakable Mom recovery space, which has become a symbol of female strength, will live on. And in our Mental Recovery Center—a place where a woman can always find safety and professional help—additional support groups will appear,” shares the head of the Masha Foundation , Tetiana Muratkina.
Right now, during this brutal war, it is especially important for Ukrainian women to feel the world’s indifference to our struggle for the basic right to life. And such strong support from the international community inspires the Masha Fund’s team to work ever harder to bring care and hope to those who need it most.
Learn more about the Masha Foundation : https://mashafund.org.ua/
The Masha Foundation on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/masha.foundation
