Women who led
Asha Ahmed Abdalla (Caasha Axmed Cabdalla)
Asha Ahmed Abdalla (born 1958, Erigavo) is a Somali politician and a founding member of the Transitional Federal Parliament. She became an MP after the Arta peace conference of 2000 and, in 2004, was the first woman to run for president of Somalia. She sat in parliament until the Federal Parliament took over in August 2012.
Asha Ahmed AbdallaCaasha Axmed Cabdalla · Asha Abdalla
- Lived
- 1958 to today
- Known as one of
- Women who led
- Era
- Rebuilding without a state, 1991 to 2012
- Sources
- 6 sources
Who is she?
Asha Ahmed Abdalla is a Somali politician who served for more than a decade as a member of Somalia's transitional parliaments, representing the northern Sanaag constituency (Wikipedia, Asha Ahmed Abdalla). Wikipedia describes her as a founding member of the Transitional Federal Parliament and the first woman to run for president of Somalia (same source).
Early life
She was born in 1958 in Erigavo, in the Sanaag region. She spent her early childhood in Yemen and returned to Somalia in the late 1960s (Wikipedia). She later studied in the United States, graduating from LaGuardia Community College in New York, and holds Somali and American citizenship (same source, citing allAfrica).
Arta and the Transitional National Government
In 2000 she took part in the Somali peace conference in Arta, Djibouti, and was then chosen as a member of parliament in the Transitional National Government (TNG) (Wikipedia, citing Somali Guardian). Wikipedia records that she also held posts in the TNG cabinet: minister for demobilisation, disarmament, reintegration and disabled care, and deputy minister of labour and sports (same source). See Transitional governments, 2000 to 2012.
The 2004 presidential race
In 2004 she was among the 275 delegates who formed the Transitional Federal Government. That year she ran for president, the first woman in Somalia's history to do so; she was eliminated in the first round, according to Wikipedia (Wikipedia, citing The Guardian, 12 October 2016). She remained a member of the Transitional Federal Parliament until the Federal Parliament was inaugurated in August 2012 (same source).
Women's and community work
She headed the Somali Women's Parliamentarian Association. Her campaign slogan was "Give Somalia a Mother's Nurturing" (Wikipedia; Ode magazine, archived). She founded the Community Sustaining Development Organization, which works on rehabilitation after conflict (United Nations, "I am grateful I can contribute to the humanitarian response"). In 2011 she joined a Nobel Peace Prize panel on women's political leadership in peace and conflict (Wikipedia).
In short
A Sanaag-born MP of the transitional era, from Arta in 2000 to 2012, and the first woman to stand for Somalia's presidency.
Sources
- Wikipedia, Asha Ahmed Abdalla · en.wikipedia.org
- allAfrica · allafrica.com
- Somali Guardian · somaliguardian.com
- The Guardian, 12 October 2016 · theguardian.com
- Ode magazine, archived · web.archive.org
- United Nations, "I am grateful I can contribute to the humanitarian response" · un.org
Asha Ahmed AbdallaCaasha Axmed Cabdalla · Asha Abdalla
- Lived
- 1958 to today
- Known as one of
- Women who led
- Era
- Rebuilding without a state, 1991 to 2012
- Sources
- 6 sources
Toosoo!
Calankii is made by Toosoo, which works for one united, prosperous Somalia.
Can you help with Asha Ahmed Abdalla (Caasha Axmed Cabdalla)? Tell us what you can give.
I want to help with this
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).