Women’s March: Meet Aisha Yesufu, the fearless activist

If you knew Aisha Yesufu from her activism with the #BringBackOurGirls movement, you might find it difficult to picture her as a businesswoman. 

Well, now you know. Although she is an “an active Nigerian citizen who…is unapologetic about her stance in fighting for justice and equity”, as well as an advocate for good governance and education, especially for poor children, Aisha Yesufu also teaches financial literacy to empower people to be financially independent..

• Women’s March: The heroism of Fatima Zarah Umar
• Women own only 20% of enterprises in formal sector -Tallen

In continuation of the Daily Trust Women’s March Series on women worth celebrating, here are a few reasons why Aisha was picked;

• She is the founder of Citizens Hub, a not-for-profit organisation that seeks to build financially independent, active and responsible citizens.
• She is a recipient of the Martin Luther King Award.
• She is the Chairperson of the Strategic Team of the #BringBackOurGirls movement ..that campaigned for the freedom of the abducted Chibok Girls in 2014. She was the group’s Sit Out Coordinator before then.
• She made the BBC 100 Women in 2020, a list of 100 influential women across the world.
• She won the Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti Human Rights Award (Individual) in the 2020 Community Engagement and Human Rights (CAHR) Awards
• She was the #SheaWomanoftheYear 2020 in the #Activism category.
• She was a member of the Independent Audit Committee (IAC) of The Future Awards Africa 2019.
• She was a speaker at the Chatham House Africa Programme organised by UNDP.
• She was one of New African magazine’s 100 Most Influential Africans in 2020.
• She won the Guardian Woman Award in October 2020.
• She contributed to the book of essays, Remaking Nigeria: Sixty Years, Sixty Voices.