Safia Elmi Djibril (born 1963) is a Djiboutian politician and women's rights activist. She is a member of the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repre ...

from the

People's Rally for Progress The People's Rally for Progress ( ar, التجمع الشعبي من أجل التقدم; french: Rassemblement populaire pour le Progrès, RPP) is a political party in Djibouti. It has dominated politics in the country since 1979, initially under ...

party, which is part of the ruling Union for the Presidential Majority coalition.

Political career

Safia Elmi Djibril first entered politics through her work on

Djibouti Djibouti, ar, جيبوتي ', french: link=no, Djibouti, so, Jabuuti officially the Republic of Djibouti, is a country in the Horn of Africa, bordered by Somalia to the south, Ethiopia to the southwest, Eritrea in the north, and the Red ...

's health programs. She is a longtime opponent of

female genital mutilation Female genital mutilation (FGM), also known as female genital cutting, female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) and female circumcision, is the ritual cutting or removal of some or all of the external female genitalia. The practice is found ...

and other traditional practices that are harmful to women and children.

National Assembly

Djibril is a member of the

from the

party, which is affiliated with the ruling Union for the Presidential Majority coalition. She represents Quartier 7, an area of the eponymous

capital city A capital city or capital is the municipality holding primary status in a country, state, province, Department (country subdivision), department, or other subnational entity, usually as its seat of the government. A capital is typically a city ...

. She was first elected in the 2008 Djiboutian parliamentary election, joining a small number of other women in the chamber including

Aïcha Mohamed Robleh Aïcha Mohamed Robleh ( so, Caasha Maxamed Rooble; born 1965) is a Djiboutian writer. Robleh was born in Djibouti (city), Djibouti, and holds a degree in the field of workplace relations, focusing on work-health matters. She was a departmental h ...

and Hasna Barkat Daoud. Djibril is part of a wave of women who have entered Djibouti's political scene in recent years. There were no women in Djibouti's parliament in 2000, but now the law requires at least 25 percent of legislators be female, a threshold that was nearly met in the 2018 election. In 2019, Djibril helped form a women's caucus within the legislature. She serves as second vice president on President

Ismaïl Omar Guelleh Ismaïl Omar Guelleh ( so, Ismaaciil Cumar Geelle ar, إسماعيل عمر جليه) (born 27 November 1947) is the current President of Djibouti. He has been in office since 1999, making him one of the longest-serving rulers in Africa. He is ...

's cabinet and is a member of the High Court of Justice.

Pan-African organizations

Djibril's focus continues to be women and children's health, and she is vice president of the

Inter-African Committee on Traditional Practices Affecting the Health of Women and Children The Inter-African Committee on Traditional Practices Affecting the Health of Women and Children (IAC) is a non-governmental organization (NGO) which seeks to change social values and raise consciousness towards eliminating female genital mutilation ...

, representing Djibouti's first lady

Kadra Mahamoud Haid Kadra Mahamoud Haid ( so, Khadra Maxamuud Xayd) is a Djiboutian politician, political advisor, and First Lady of Djibouti since 1999. She is the wife of President Ismaïl Omar Guelleh In 2003, Haid spoke against female genital mutilation (FGM) ...

. She is a member of the

Pan-African Parliament The Pan-African Parliament (PAP), also known as the African Parliament, is the legislative body of the African Union. It held its inaugural session in March 2004. The Parliament exercises oversight, and has advisory and consultative powers, ha ...

, previously serving as a vice president of the body until 2018. She has also worked as part of the Pan-African Parliament's Women's Caucus.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Djibril, Safia Elmi 1963 births Members of the National Assembly (Djibouti) Djiboutian women in politics People's Rally for Progress politicians Women members of the Pan-African Parliament Members of the Pan-African Parliament from Djibouti Living people