Salamatu Hussaini Suleiman is a

Nigerian Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was derived from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jo ...

lawyer who currently serves as the

ECOWAS The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS; also known as CEDEAO in French and Portuguese) is a regional political and economic union of twelve countries of West Africa. Collectively, the present and former members comprise an area ...

Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security. Prior to this, she was appointed Minister of Women Affairs and Social Development in December 2008. She left office in March 2010 when Acting President

Goodluck Jonathan Goodluck Ebele Azikiwe Jonathan (born 20 November 1957) is a Nigerian politician who served as the president of Nigeria from 2010 to 2015. He lost the 2015 presidential election to former military head of state General Muhammadu Buhari and ...

dissolved his cabinet.

Background

Salamatu Hussaini Suleiman was born in

Argungu Argungu is a city in Nigeria's Kebbi State, situated on the Sokoto River. As of 2007 Argungu had an estimated population of 47,064. The city is the seat of the Argungu Emirate, a traditional state. The city is a major agricultural center for t ...

, a fishing community in

Kebbi State Kebbi State (; Fulfulde: Leydi Kebbi 𞤤𞤫𞤴𞤣𞤭 𞤳𞤫𞤦𞥆𞤭) is a state in northwestern Nigeria, bordered to the east and north by the states of Sokoto and Zamfara, and to the south by Niger State while its western border ...

. Her father was an area court judge, and her mother came from the

Gwandu Gwandu, also called Gando, is a town and emirate in Kebbi State, Nigeria. The seat of government for the emirate and district of this name is in Birnin Kebbi, which is the capital of Kebbi State and was capital of the historical Kingdom of Kebb ...

royal family. She was brought up in

Birnin Kebbi Birnin Kebbi is a city located in Northwestern Nigeria It is the capital city of Kebbi State and headquarters of the Gwandu Emirate. As at 2007 the city had an estimated population of 125,594 people. Kebbi is mostly a Hausa and Fulani state, wit ...

and

. In 1972, she obtained entry to Queens College, Lagos. She went on to

Ahmadu Bello University The Ahmadu Bello University (ABU) is a public research university located in Zaria, Nigeria, Zaria, Kaduna State, Nigeria. It was opened in 1962 as the University of Northern Nigeria. The university has four colleges, three schools, 18 faculties, ...

Zaria Zaria is a List of Nigerian cities by population, metropolitan city in Nigeria, located at present time within four local government areas in Kaduna State. It serves as the capital of the Zazzau Emirate Council and is one of the original sev ...

where she obtained a degree in law. She then went to the

London School of Economics and Political Science The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), established in 1895, is a public university, public research university in London, England, and a member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the University ...

where she gained a master's degree in law.

Career

Her first job as a lawyer was with the

Ministry of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice, is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...

in the old

Sokoto State Sokoto ( Hausa: ; Fula: , ''Leydi Sokoto'') is one of the 36 states of Nigeria, located in the extreme northwest of the country. It is bounded by Republic of the Niger to the north and west for 363 km (226 miles), and the states of Zamf ...

. She then worked at Continental Merchant Bank, Lagos for seven years, and worked for a short time at NAL Merchant Bank before moving to Aluminum Smelter Company, where she was company secretary/legal adviser. After that, she worked at the Securities and Exchange Commission before being appointed Minister.

Minister for Women Affairs

President

Umaru Yar'Adua Umaru Musa Yar'Adua (; 16 August 19515 May 2010) was a Nigerian politician who served as the president of Nigeria from 2007 until his death in May 2010. He won the Nigerian presidential election held on 21 April 2007, and was sworn in on 29 Ma ...

appointed Suleiman as Minister for Women Affairs and Social Development on 17 December 2008. In September 2009, Suleiman decried marginalization of women in Nigerian politics. She said that violence and male chauvinism were prevalent in the political climate, and coupled with lack of money few women were able to contest for public office. At meetings in October 2009 organized by

UNICEF UNICEF ( ), originally the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund, officially United Nations Children's Fund since 1953, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing Humanitarianism, humanitarian and Development a ...

and the Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development, Suleiman said her mission was to serve as the national vehicle for speedy and healthy development of Nigerian women, and to ensure the protection and development of women and children for meaningful life. She urged the state to give women at least 30% representation in elective and appointive positions. In December 2009, she decried the failure of the government to ratify the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women The Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) is an international treaty adopted in 1979 by the United Nations General Assembly. Described as an international bill of rights for women, it was instituted ...

(CEDAW).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Suleiman, Salamatu Hussaini Federal ministers of Nigeria Living people Nigerian Muslims People from Kebbi State Ahmadu Bello University alumni Women's ministers of Nigeria Nigerian women lawyers 21st-century Nigerian politicians 21st-century Nigerian women politicians Women government ministers of Nigeria Year of birth missing (living people)

Background

Career

Minister for Women Affairs

See also

References