Hafsat Abiola-Costello

President/CEO Women in Africa

Hafsat Abiola is a human rights and democracy activist. She comes from a family of dedicated Pan-Africanists and courageous fighters for freedom and justice in person of Late M.K.O. Abiola. To continue the legacy left by her parents, Ms. Abiola founded and directs an organization called the Kudirat Initiative for Democracy (KIND), which seeks to strengthen civil society and promote democracy in Nigeria.

Ms. Abiola is also involved in the global movement to empower youth and women and to strengthen democracy. She was a founding member of the State of the World Forums Emerging Leaders Program and Global Youth Connect. Currently, she is a Fetzer Fellow and serves on the Boards of Youth Employment Summit, Educate Girls Globally, Womens Learning Partnership, Hewlett Packards World e-Inclusion Project, and the Global Security Institute. She travels around the world to speak about justice issues and writes articles.