Jill Biden presents the White House with the International Women of Courage Awards

Jill Biden, the first lady of the United States, will honour women who have achieved great things at great expense by hosting the inaugural International Women of Courage Awards at the White House, her office informed.

Biden told, "We wanted to convey the tales of these extraordinary women to the broadest stage we could. "Girls worldwide need to know that there are women standing up for them, changing their neighbourhoods, and creating a better world for all of us.".

The White House will host the ceremony on March 8. The award, which is given out by the State Department, honours "women from all over the world who have demonstrated exceptional courage, strength, and leadership in advocating for peace, justice, human rights, gender equity and equality, and the empowerment of women and girls, in all their diversity, among other things, frequently at great personal risk and sacrifice."

Since the award's introduction in 2007, more than 180 women from 80 different nations have received it. Honorees have come from countries including Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Pakistan, Somalia, Syria, and others where laws and cultural norms frequently infringe on women's rights. During the ceremony, American Women for International Understanding awards funds to the recipients.

The recipients of the award from the previous year were from Bangladesh, Brazil, Burma, Colombia, Iraq, Liberia, Libya, Moldova, Nepal, Romania, South Africa, and Vietnam.

Biden stated at the previous year's award presentation, "From gentle lullabies to battle cries for justice, women nurse and nurture, teach and create, lead and dream our planet forward - each and every day. "Women have never been silent, but instead have faced assault, hatred, prejudice, seclusion, unfinished work, and unrelenting care. The idea that women are hazardous has been spread. And the reason for that is that they pose a threat to injustice and corruption. We have the ability to topple oppressive barriers by speaking out."