Women who led
Amina Warsame (Aamina Maxamuud Warsame)
Amina Mahmoud Warsame is a Somali social scientist and women's rights campaigner. She co-wrote a 1985 study on female circumcision, one of the early African voices against the practice, led the Hargeisa women's group Nagaad, helped found the Somaliland Women's Research and Action Group, and in 2005 was among the first women to stand for Somaliland's parliament.
Amina WarsameAmina Mahmoud Warsame · Aamina Maxamuud Warsame
- Known as one of
- Women who led
- Era
- The Republic, 1960 to 1991; Rebuilding without a state, 1991 to 2012; Who holds power, 2012 to now
- Sources
- 1 sources
Who is she?
Amina Mahmoud Warsame is a Somali social scientist (Wikipedia, Amina Warsame). She holds a master's degree in human development from the Institute of Social Studies in The Hague (same source).
Campaigning against FGM
She co-wrote Social and Cultural Aspects of Female Circumcision and Infibulation: A Preliminary Report (1985), and was one of the early African voices against female genital mutilation, alongside Raqiya Abdalla, Asma El Dareer, Efua Dorkenoo and Nahid Toubia (Wikipedia).
Women's groups in Hargeisa
She lived in Sweden after leaving Somalia during the civil war (Wikipedia). She helped found the Somaliland Women's Research and Action Group and served as executive director of Nagaad, a women's network in Hargeisa (same source). In 2005 she was one of the first women to stand for a seat in Somaliland's parliament (same source). Somaliland declared independence in 1991; Israel recognised it on 26 December 2025; most states and the AU regard it as part of Somalia.
In short
A social scientist who spoke out early against FGM and later led women's organising in Hargeisa.
Sources
- Wikipedia, Amina Warsame · en.wikipedia.org
Amina WarsameAmina Mahmoud Warsame · Aamina Maxamuud Warsame
- Known as one of
- Women who led
- Era
- The Republic, 1960 to 1991; Rebuilding without a state, 1991 to 2012; Who holds power, 2012 to now
- Sources
- 1 sources
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Where this matters
Same era
- Australia18,401 people of Somali ancestry and 8,101 born in Somalia lived in Australia at the 2021 Census, more than half in Victoria. History, work, issues.
- Birmingham (Somali diaspora)About 17,000 to 21,600 Somalis live in Birmingham (Census 2021), mostly in Nechells, Newtown, Small Heath and Alum Rock. History, work, health and ties home.
- Bristol (Somali diaspora)9,167 people in Bristol identified as Somali or Somalilander in Census 2021, the city's largest minority group. Where they live, work, housing, leaders and ties home.
- Calgary, Alberta, Canada2,845 people of Somali origin lived in Calgary at the 2021 Census, plus 890 in Brooks. How they came, who serves them and what they face.
- Denmark (Somali diaspora)21,885 people of Somali origin lived in Denmark in 2026, half born there. Numbers, history, work, permit reviews, and ties home.
- DjiboutiAbout 13,900 refugees from Somalia live in Djibouti (Aug 2026): numbers since 1990, Ali Addeh, Holl-Holl, the 2017 refugee law, Arta 2000 and 2025 returns.
Keep reading
- Edna Adan Ismail: the nurse-midwife who built a hospital in HargeisaEdna Adan Ismail: first Somali nurse-midwife, WHO officer, founder of a hospital and university in Hargeisa, FGM campaigner, 2023 Templeton Prize winner.
- Hawo Tako (Xaawo Taako)Hawo Tako (Xaawo Taako), the Somali Youth League member who died in Mogadishu in January 1948 and is remembered as a national heroine.
- Asha Haji Elmi (Caasha Xaaji Cilmi)Asha Haji Elmi, born 1962: founder of the Sixth Clan women's movement, peace negotiator, MP and 2008 Right Livelihood laureate.
- Fartuun Adan (Fartuun Cabdisalaan Aadan)Fartuun Adan, born 1969: head of Elman Peace in Mogadishu, co-founder of Sister Somalia, and 2022 Right Livelihood laureate.
- Dr Hawa Abdi (Xaawo Cabdi Dhiblaawe)Dr Hawa Abdi (1947–2020): doctor and lawyer whose clinic near Afgooye became a hospital and a refuge for 90,000 people.
- Fadumo Dayib (Faadumo Daayib)Fadumo Dayib (born 1972): former refugee, nurse and UN health expert, first woman to run for President of Somalia (2016).