No fewer than seven women will be in the cabinet of President Bola Tinubu as ministers, according to a list of 28 nominees for ministerial positions sent to Senate on Thursday.
The president of the senate Godswill Akpabio on Thursday unveiled the ministerial nominees and females represents 25 per cent of the total names submitted.
Women who made the list are Hannatu Musawa, Betta Chimaobim Edu, Nkiru Onyejiocha, Doris Anite Uzoka, Uju Kennedy Ohanenye, Stella Okotete, and Imaan Suleiman Ibrahim.
President Tinubu said more ministerial nominees would be sent to the Senate, suggesting that more women could be added to the list.
Zainab Jaji, a public affairs commentator said she was impressed by the number and quality of women that would be in the cabinet.
“Glad to see many women on the team, because it will bring diversity and show progressive nature of Nigeria,” she said.
Below are the profiles of the six female minister designates:
Hannatu Musawa
Hannatu Musawa was born on 20 September 1973 amd hails from Katsina State.
She is a Nigerian lawyer, a solicitor of the Supreme Court of Nigeria, and a solicitor in England & Wales, UK.
She was the Deputy Spokesperson and the Deputy Director Public Affairs of the All progressives congress (APC).
Betta Chimaobim Edu
37-year-old Betta Chimaobim Edu is from Cross River State and was born on 27 October 1986.
Edu holds a Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery degree from the University of Calabar, she is a Harvard certified, Fellow of the Royal Society for Public Health, United Kingdom.
She was the former Cross River State commissioner for health from 2019 until her resignation in 2022. She is the incumbent APC National Women Leader.
Nkiru Onyejeocha
Nkiru Onyejiocha hails from Abia State and was born on 23 November 1969.
She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, and a Master’s degree in International Affairs and Diplomacy from Imo State University.
From 2002 to 2003, she was the Commissioner for Resource Management and Manpower Development in Abia State and was the transition Executive Chairman of the Umunneochi Local Government Area of the state
In 2007, she was first elected a member of the House of Representatives on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) but later defected to APC.
In 2011, she was appointed chairman House Committee on Aviation
In 2013, Onyejiocha called for a holistic investigation and prosecution of officials who were involved in compromising aviation safety rules that led to the crash of a passenger plane– Dana Air Flight 992
Also In 2019, Onyejiocha ran for the speaker of the 9th House of Reps after she was re-elected to the House for a fourth term.
Doris Anite Uzoka
Doris Anite Uzoka is from Imo State, born on 13 December 1967.
She is a medical doctor and a chartered financial analyst. She was a former General Manager of Zenith Bank Plc and the incumbent Imo State Commissioner for Finance and Coordination of Economy.
Uju Kennedy Ohanenye
Uju Kennedy Ohanenye hails from Anambra State and was born on 23 December 1973
The 50 years old is a lawyer by training, and a businesswoman with stakes in real estate and education. .
Uju was the only female APC presidential aspirant in the 2023 presidential election.
She is married.
Stella Okotete
Stella Okotete is from Delta state, and was born on 4 January 1988
She has a Bachelor of Arts degree in International Studies from Benson Idahosa University, Benin City.
Okotete is currently the Executive Director, Business Development of the Nigerian Export-Import Bank (NEXIM).
Before her appointment into NEXIM, she was a focal person for the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in Delta State between 2011 and 2015.
She is an honorary senior member of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria.
Imaan Ibrahim
Imaan Suleiman Ibrahim was born on April 1980 and hails from Keffi Nasarawa State.
Her father was S.K Danladi, an Abuja-based engineer and developer
Ibrahim graduated with a bachelor degree in sociology from the University of Abuja. At the age of 21, she received two master’s degrees, a Master of Business Administration (MBA) and a Master of Arts (MA) from Webster University.
She was the Diirector General of National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), from 1 December 2020 till 27 May 2021.
And when former President Muhammadu Buhari announced a swap, she was redeployed as the honorable Federal Commissioner of the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants, and Internally Displaced Persons.