NEW YORK: A painted portrait of Malala Yousafzai, a Pakistani schoolgirl shot in the head by the Taliban, fetched $102,500 at auction on Wednesday in New York with the money going to female education in Nigeria.

The proceeds will be donated from her Malala Fund to a special fund designed to assist local NGOs working to educate girls and women in Nigeria, where more than 200 schoolgirls are missing after being snatched at gun point last month by militants

Auction house Christie's had estimated the portrait of the veiled teenager done in 2013 by leading British artist Jonathan Yeo would fetch $60,000-$80,000.

But after several bids it was snapped up in just a few minutes at a higher price.