Biography of Fakhrriyyah Hashim

Fakhrriyyah Hashim is a Nigerian social development expert, feminist and anti-GBV advocate. She is also a founding member of the notable Nigerian feminist group, Feminist Coalition.

Education and Career

Born in Kano state and raised in Abuja, Fakhrriyyah Hashim, popularly known as Fakhuus, holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Finance from Abu Dhabi University, and a Master’s Degree in Emerging Economies and Inclusive Development from King’s College London. Fakhrriyyah currently works as a fellow on the Peace, Security and Early Development Career Fellow for Early Career African Women at the African Leadership Centre (ALC); King’s College London. In 2021, she was one of the speakers at the Council For Foreign Relations’ Book Launch for the book called Awakening; #MeToo and the Global Fight for Women’s Rights. 

Fakhuus has also worked for NGOs such as Girl Child Concerns in the conflict-ridden Borno State on SDGs. She has also worked with the Nigerian Vice Presidency on social programmes delivery, and for Netaq in the UAE. Her research interests include local economic development and governance, climate conflict and feminist structural response to SGBV in Nigeria.

Activism

She was the founder of the #ArewaMeToo movement which saw women of Northern Nigerian descent sharing stories of abuse and assault. In February 2019, Fakhuus tweeted “Time’s up, it’s over. You are done getting away with monstrosities against women” and this tweet kicked off numerous testimonies of sexual violence from women in Nothern Nigeria. This led to the creation of the #NorthNormal movement to protest violence against women and discriminatory practices against female children in Northern Nigerian states. As a result of her activism, Fakhrriyyah Hashim has been the victim of online abuse, bullying, and has even received death threats.