Amina Suleiman

Founded West Africa's first girls' boarding school that educated over 10,000 students

Amina Suleiman (1925-2001) broke gender barriers in colonial Nigeria by creating Africa's first girls' boarding school in 1948. Growing up in Abeokuta, she witnessed the 98% illiteracy rate among Yoruba women. After studying at London's Bedford College, she returned to Nigeria determined to change this. With £500 savings and a rented mud-brick house, she launched the Abeokuta Girls' School which eventually grew into a 500-student institution. Her innovative curriculum combined traditional Yoruba studies with modern subjects like engineering and medicine. During the 1950s, she pioneered scholarships for girls from polygamous families, a radical move at the time. By 1960, her graduates held 40% of Nigeria's teaching positions. Suleiman's work inspired Ghana's Girls' Education Project and the UN's Global Education First Initiative. The school's archives are preserved at the African Educational Archives in Accra. Her advocacy for girls' education remains a cornerstone of UNESCO's gender equality programs.