“You were designed for accomplishment, engineered for success, and endowed with the seeds of greatness.”
Zig Ziglar
Driven by an overwhelming passion for excellence, Dr. Zainab Talatu Ahmed, invades every space life gives her with a contagious enthusiasm. She sticks out amongst her peers like a piercing star in the heart of the night sky. She echoes through time as a beat of hope. She ticks with the distinction of an enigma, whose unnerving attainments will tower in the soils of history, as some of the most important milestones of the human spirit in our climes, not only in Nasarawa State, but Arewa at large.
As a former lecturer, retired Permanent Secretary to three ministries in Nasarawa State, the former Secretary to the Nasarawa State Government, former Honourable Commissioner, Nasarawa State Civil Service Commission, and the current Assistant National Secretary, Federation of Muslim Women’s Association in Nigeria (FOMWAN), her trails are enriched with evergreen petals of greatness, resilience and courage.
She began her rich trajectory in the classroom, when she served in Sokoto State, before joining the Federal Polytechnic, Nasarawa, as a lecturer. She rose through the ranks as one of the most refined scholars in the Polytechnic, before joining the Nasarawa State Government as a Permanent Secretary, during which she served in strategic ministries, shaping the administration of the state across different sectors.
At the Federal Polytechnic, Nasarawa, her successful conception and birth of the IJMB (Interim Joint Matriculation Board) program (coordinated by the Institute of Education, ABU, Zaria), remains to date, one of the most effective programs in the Polytechnic. No wonder, when she joined the State Government as an administrator, and had served in different ministries and capacities with the Nasarawa State Government, she was appointed to the office of the Secretary to the Government of Nasarawa State, being the first woman and to date, the only woman in Nasarawa, to have held that position.
In her position as the SSG, the dexterity with which she managed the affairs of government, motherhood and her spousal duties, without any of the three areas suffering neglect, dub her as indeed, one of the spectacular amazons of northern Nigeria. The office of an SSG is the engine room of every government. It runs on autopilot. Even at that, she could still find time for family. As tough, demanding, and challenging as that phase in her life was, she still succeeded and finished, thanks to the Almighty, as one of the finest SSGs in the history of Nasarawa State.
As a firm believer in the possibilities of dreams and visions, no matter how unseating they may be, Dr. Zainab Ahmed has lived a great life so far. Born almost six decades ago, and to have accomplished this much within that space of time as a woman in northern Nigeria, is not a small feat. She has always believed that it is possible to achieve optimally through patience, perseverance, fear of Allah SWT, and total humility. These virtues have coloured her life in the last few decades of her dedicated service to humanity and her creator.
Speaking on why she joined ADSI, she says: “To give back to the society its dues in all facets of human endeavours and within my capacity. As a woman who got the privilege to be educated (a Muslim in a Mission (Catholic) School, then all the way to the doctorate level, became a lecturer, an administrator (as Permanent Secretary) then to the higher position of a Secretary to a Government, I am thankful. Now as a retiree, what better way to direct my energy and resources to serve humanity, given that Arewa has been reduced to a pitiful State, than through a credible and trusted NGO which I have found in ADSI?”
Indeed, her matchless commitment to the plight of common Arewans in Nasarawa and beyond is commendable. In her position as the Nasarawa State Coordinator of ADSI, she has been committed to giving back to humanity through the charitable interventions she has led in the state. Further to that, in FOMWAN, she has served in the capacity of the Nasarawa State Amirah, thus helping Muslim women in the state in innumerable ways.
Aside her total commitment to the services of ADSI, she currently serves as the Assistant Zonal Coordinator, (North Central States of Nasarawa, FCT, Niger), Member, Elections, Good Governance, Gender and Human Rights as well as Assistant National Secretary of FOMWAN. Still to that, having served in high-powered committees and delegations in Nasarawa State and beyond, she has become a custodian of administrative wisdom, a one-stop-library of understanding, mentorship and compassion for serving and emerging leaders in the state and beyond.
Dr. Zainab Ahmed exudes the aura of a queen of many desirable qualities. She saturates our ecosystem with the scent of greatness, and brings smiles to many faces through her countless humanitarian interventions in ADSI. Wouldn’t it be a great honour to join her in transforming lives in Arewa?
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One Response
Well written. Zainab is indeed an epitome of hardwork, humility, and kindheartedness. May Allah shower her with more Barakah and accomplishments.