Meet Ayesha Khan, the 22-year-old British High Commissioner in India — but there’s a catch

• The British High Commission in India observes the International Day of the Girl Child on October 11. Ayesha Khan who won the ‘High Commissioner for a Day’ competition.
  
• As a High Commissioner on October 4, Ayesha headed a diplomatic mission.
  
• She spent the day overseeing the UK’s largest overseas network, media interactions, and stakeholder meetings among others.

The British High Commission in India observes the International Day of the Girl Child on October 11. This year, it chose Ayesha Khan — a 22-year-old girl as the ‘High Commissioner for a Day’ after a competition.


The winner of the honour hails from Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh. She is a Delhi University alumnus. Her responsibilities include overseeing the UK’s largest overseas network, attending media interactions and stakeholder meetings.

On October 4, when she was the High Commissioner of the Day, she met business leaders and foreign policy experts. She also visited Apeejay School in Delhi to promote gender inclusivity with ‘Changing Moves Changing Minds’ programme. She also interacted with women workers in the unorganised sector along with a discussion with a beneficiary of Facebook’s GOAL (Going Online as Leaders) programme.

“Leading daily briefings, interacting with stakeholders from the UK and India, and experiencing the richness of multiculturalism has been a great experience. I believe education is a powerful tool that can help achieve gender equality,” Ayesha said.

The competition was held for women between the ages of 18 and 23. “I greatly enjoyed working for and with Ayesha for the day. She spoke articulately, passionately and convincingly on this important issue,” Sir Dominic Asquith, Deputy High Commissioner for the Day said.

To be chosen for the event, interested candidates were asked to record and send a one-minute video on gender equality. It was also shared across social media platforms — Twitter, Facebook or Instagram under the hashtag #DayoftheGirl.

“I hope this initiative will capture people’s imagination around India - whether they live in big cities or small villages,” he added. The initiative was first implemented in 2012. Last year, Esha Bahal of Amity University won the competition.

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