Turai Umar Musa Yar'Adua (born 26 July 1957) is the widow of the former Nigerian president and former

Katsina State Katsina State ( ; 𞤤𞤫𞤴𞤣𞤭 𞤳𞤢𞥁𞤭𞤲𞤢) is a state in the northwestern geopolitical zone of Nigeria. It is bordered to the west by Zamfara State, to the east by Kano and Jigawa states, and to the south by Kaduna St ...

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

Umaru Musa Yar'Adua Umaru Musa Yar'Adua (; 16 August 19515 May 2010) was a Nigerian politician who served as the president of Nigeria from 2007 until his death in May 2010. He won the Nigerian presidential election held on 21 April 2007, and was sworn in on 29 M ...

. She was the

First Lady of Nigeria The first lady of Nigeria is an informal, but accepted title, held by the wife of the president of Nigeria. The current First Lady, first lady is Oluremi Tinubu who has held the title since 29 May 2023. The Constitution of Nigeria does not creat ...

from 2007 until the death of her husband on 5 May 2010.

Education

Turai Yar'Adua was born in the Katsina

metropolitan area A metropolitan area or metro is a region consisting of a densely populated urban area, urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories which share Industry (economics), industries, commercial areas, Transport infrastructure, transport network ...

of northern Nigeria in July 1957. She attended Garama Primary School in Katsina as a child and proceeded to the Government Girls Secondary School, Kankiya, also in Katsina state. Turai Yar'Adua also attended Katsina College of Arts, Science and Technology in

Zaria Zaria is a List of Nigerian cities by population, metropolitan city in Nigeria, located at present time within four local government areas in Kaduna State. It serves as the capital of the Zazzau Emirate Council and is one of the original sev ...

, Kaduna state, where she was reportedly named "best student" in 1980. In 1983, Turai Yar'Adua received a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...

in language from

Ahmadu Bello University The Ahmadu Bello University (ABU) is a public research university located in Zaria, Nigeria, Zaria, Kaduna State, Nigeria. It was opened in 1962 as the University of Northern Nigeria. The university has four colleges, three schools, 18 faculties, ...

Personal life

Turai married Umaru Yar'Adua in 1975 and they have five daughters and two sons. Her two sons are Shehu Umaru Musa Yar'adua and Musa Umaru Musa Yar'adua. Shehu is the name of Umaru Yar'adua's elder brother and former de facto vice president of Nigeria,

Shehu Musa Yar'Adua Shehu Musa Yar'Adua (; 5 March 1943 – 8 December 1997) was a Nigerian general and politician who was the ''de facto'' vice president of Nigeria as Chief of Staff, Supreme Headquarters when Nigeria was under military rule from 1976 to 1979. H ...

. One of their daughters, Zainab, is married to Usman Saidu Nasamu Dakingari, a former

governor of Kebbi state This is a list of Kebbi State administrators and ''Governors of Kebbi State''. Kebbi State was formed on 27 August 1991, when it was split off from Sokoto State. References

*{{cite web , url=http://www.worldstatesmen.org/Nigeria_fed ...

. In September 2007, Turai was the guest of honour at the commissioning of the Mobility Aid and Braille Centre in

Akure Akure is a city in south-western Nigeria. It is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Ondo State. The city had a population of 403,000 as of the 2006 population census. Its current population is estimated at 774,000.Ondo State Ondo () is a States of Nigeria, state in Points of the compass, southwestern Nigeria. It was created on 3 February 1976 from the former Western State (Nigeria), Western State. Ondo borders Ekiti State to the north, Kogi State to the northeast fo ...

. The centre was built by the Handicapped Education Foundation (HANDEF), a non-governmental organization founded by Olufunke Agagu, then First Lady of Ondo State. Also, in attendance at the event were the Vice President's wife,

Patience Jonathan Patience Faka Jonathan ( Iwari; born 25 October 1957) is a Nigerian civil servant who served as the First Lady of Nigeria from 2010 to 2015 and second lady of Nigeria from 2007 to 2010. She is the wife of former President and Vice President of ...

, and the wives of other state governors. Turai was rumored to be one of her husband's closest advisors during his tenure as president of Nigeria. For example, it was believed that Turai Yar'Adua influenced the choice of Professor

Babatunde Osotimehin Babatunde Osotimehin (6 February 1949 – 4 June 2017) was a Nigerian physician, who served as Minister of Health, and in 2011 became the executive director of the United Nations Population Fund, holding the rank of Under-Secretary-General of th ...

, the former Director-General of the National Action Committee on

AIDS The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...

, as Nigeria's

Minister of Health A health minister is the member of a country's government typically responsible for protecting and promoting public health and providing welfare spending and other social security services. Some governments have separate ministers for mental heal ...

, during her husband's administration. Turai started her career as a teacher, before assuming the role of Katsina state's first lady, serving from 29 May 1999 – 29 May 2007, where she was noted for her empathy towards the plight of the less privileged. Turai Yar’Adua visited the First Lady,

Aisha Buhari Aisha Halilu Buhari (; born 17 February 1971) is a professional beauty therapist who served as the First Lady of Nigeria from 2015 to 2023. Early life and family Aisha Halilu was born on 17 February 1971, in Adamawa State, northeastern Nigeria ...

at the presidential villa, Abuja, early February 2020. The former first lady came visiting with her daughter Zainab Dakingari. The president's wife, stated that the two of them discussed gender-based violence, drug abuse, and the development of the country generally. Buhari added that she got Yar’Adua's perspectives on the issues, adding that Yar’Adua reminisced on the past, especially the years she spent at the State House.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yar'Adua, Turai Living people Nigerian Muslims First ladies of Nigeria People from Katsina State Ahmadu Bello University alumni 1957 births Turai