Hajiya Gambo Sawaba: The Activist Who Fought for Northern Women’s Right to Vote

Hajiya Gambo Sawaba was one of Northern Nigeria’s most fearless advocates for women’s rights. Born in 1933 to a Ghanaian father and Nupe mother, she faced hardship early in life, losing both parents as a child and becoming a mother while still a teenager. Her political journey began with the Northern Elements Progressive Union (NEPU), founded by Mallam Aminu Kano in 1950. Sawaba joined its women’s wing and organised women through door-to-door outreach, including women living in purdah. Her activism challenged conservative authorities and led to repeated arrests, imprisonment and exile from Kano. In 1956, Sawaba and other NEPU women marched to the Kaduna office of Premier Sir Ahmadu Bello to demand voting rights for Northern women. While women in parts of Southern Nigeria had begun gaining voting rights earlier, Northern women did not receive full voting rights until 1976, later reinforced under the 1979 Constitution. Sawaba was reportedly imprisoned 16 times for her political activities. Her life remains a powerful part of Nigeria’s history of women’s political participation, courage and resistance to injustice.

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