The Team
Centre For Girls Education is proud to present to you the outstanding individuals and teams that work hard for our cause.
Mardhiyyah Abbas Mashi
Chair of the Board
Mardhiyyah is the chair of the CGE board of directors. She is an Islamic Scholar and Lecturer in Islamic and Arabic Studies at Ahmadu Bello University, and has organized our workshops for religious leaders since CGE’s inception. Mardhiyyah received her Ph.D. in Arabic and obtained postdoctoral degrees from Umdurman Islamic University in Sudan in Islamic Education. Her previous research focused on the rights of women in Islam.
Habiba Mohammed
Executive Director
Habiba is an educator, advocate, and community leader dedicated to advancing girls’ education and empowerment in Northern Nigeria. As a co-founder and CGE’s Executive Director, she has been at the forefront of programs that provide adolescent girls with safe spaces, mentorship, life skills, and access to quality education. With more than two decades of experience in teaching, curriculum development, and program management, Habiba has led the scale-up of CGE’s safe space programs, which are now widely recognized as a model for empowering girls in marginalized communities.
Under her leadership, CGE has grown into a trusted institution, partnering with governments, donors, and civil society to remove barriers to girls’ education and drive systemic change. Internationally recognized for her contributions, she was named one of Apolitical’s 100 Most Influential People in Gender and Policy (2019) and serves as a Malala Fund Gulmakai Network Champion.
Daniel Perlman
Founder
Daniel co-founded CGE with Habiba and Mardhiyyah and served as its first director until 2016. He is a medical anthropologist and led the five-year NIH-funded community-based research from which CGE emerged. During this time, he lived in a rural community outside of Zaria. Based on this research, his time in the community, and working closely with Habiba and Mardhiyyah, Daniel led the design of CGE’s core safe space programs for out-of-school girls, preschool girls, in-school girls, married adolescents, and cascading mentors. Today, known as “Uncle Daniel” by CGE staff and interns, he focuses on mentoring the program teams and supporting new initiatives, including the Trauma Resilience Curriculum for girls in IDP camps and the climate-smart agricultural activities being integrated into many of CGE’s safe space programs.
Our Teams
Preschool Safe Space Team
Khadijah Bello Aminu, Fawole Iretioluwa, Lubabatu Ahmad Salisu (left to right)
Transitions out of School Program Team
Hauwa Yusuf, Maimuna Uzairu, Sakina Abdulkadir, Fatima Abubakar, Halima Yunusa, Katherine Kwarumba Zira, Mercy Bolaji (back, left to right); Bilkisu Bappa, Maryam Ilyasu, Bilkisu Abba, Maryam Albashir (front, left to right); Ramatou Mamman, Mercy Bello, Bilkisu Shuaibu (not pictured)
Girls for Health Team
Hajara Sani, Nafisa Ahmad, Alawiyya Abdullahi, Fatima Abdullahi Kudu, Amina Aminu Musa, Victoria Bello, Fatima Abdulrahman (back, left to right); Isah Muhammad, Zainab Dauda, Bilkisu Bara'u (front, left to right); Abdurrahman Yusuf (not pictured)
Interns
Rabiatu Abdullahi, Farida.S. Usman, Murjanatu Suleiman, Maimuna Uzairu, Zainura Ahmad, Hajara. M. Sani, Nusaiba Zubairu, Amina Yusuf, Zulaihat Usman, Sakina Abdulkadir, Nafisa Ahmad (left to right); Hafsat Rabiu (not pictured)
Evaluation Team
Aminu Bello Gurin, Aisha Abu (back, left to right); Mary David, Hajara Abubakar (front, left to right)
Girls Campaign for Quality Education
Bilkisu Aminu Gurin (Communication Officer), Remilekun Rose Adewole (Communication Officer), Fatima Suleiman (Program Officer), Aisha Bello Aminu (Deputy Program Officer), Maryam Abubakar (Advocacy Assistant) (left to right); Gimbiya Akapson (Deputy Program Officer) (not pictured)
Pathways to Choice
Maryam Abubakar (National Program Officer) (seated); Maryam Abdullahi (Mentor Supervisor), Joy Ochai (Program Officer), Khadijah Adamu (Deputy Program Officer), Bilkisu Bappa (Mentor Supervisor), Nafisa Aliyu (M&E Officer), Amina Ibrahim (Mentor Supervisor) (left to right); Habiba Lawal (Mentor Supervisor), Abdullahi Yakubu (National Accountant) (not pictured)
Preschool Safe Space
Saudat Abdussalam (Mentor), Khadijah Bello Aminu (M&E Assistant), Fadila Idris Makarfi (Mentor), Iretioluwa Fawole (Program Officer), Bilkisu Muhammad (Mentor), Lubabatu Ahmad Salisu (M&E Assistant) (left to right)
Adolescent Girls Initiative
Blessing Bawa Adamu (volunteer), Khadijah Mohammed (Mentor Supervisor), Zainab Aminu Gurin (National Program Officer), Hassana Zubairu (Mentor Supervisor), Kalthume Usman (Mentor Supervisor), Iretioluwa Fawole (Deputy Program Officer), Gloria Yakubu (Mentor Supervisor), Zainura Ahmad (Intern), Lubabatu Ahmad Salisu (Deputy Program Officer), Faith Adamu Bawa (Program Officer) (left to right — standing); Ahmad Mati (M&E Assistant), Khalid Sarki (M&E Officer), Fatima Baba (National Program Officer), Shettima Aliyu (Accountant) (left to right — sitting)