Fatima Naib

Afghan tech entrepreneur who created an education platform empowering women amid ongoing conflict

Fatima Naib (b. 1992) is an Afghan software engineer and entrepreneur who co-founded Afghan Digital Academy in 2020 - a groundbreaking online education platform providing STEM education to women and girls in Afghanistan through encrypted messaging apps. Facing extreme challenges including Taliban restrictions and internet blackouts, Naib developed innovative offline course modules that have trained over 2,500 female students in coding and digital literacy. Her work was featured in Forbes' 30 Under 30 Asia (2022) and TED Talk (2023). Naib also created the SafeChat app (2021) - a women-focused communication platform with self-destructing messages and facial recognition login, now used by 50,000+ users across conflict zones. In 2023, she established the Digital Nomads Network connecting Afghan tech professionals globally through satellite hotspots. Naib's contributions have been recognized by the UN Refugee Agency as a critical lifeline for women's education in crisis environments.