Ubah Ali (born 1996) is a social activist and feminist from Somalia, who campaigns against female genital mutilation.
She studied at the Abaarso School of Science and Technology from 2011 and left there in 2015. She then moved to Miss Hall’s School and graduated from there in 2016. As of 2019, she was studying for a BA degree in Politics and Human Rights at the American University of Beirut.
In 2015, aged 18, Ali established an organization called Rajo: Hope for Somaliland Community with the aim of providing educational opportunities for orphans and under-privileged students from Somaliland.[5] This was inspired by work she undertook at the Hargeisa Orphanage Centre, between 2012 and 2015, where she tutored students.[5] In 2015 she also fundraised for communities in Somaliland affected by drought.[4]
In 2020, Ali became more widely known due to her campaigning against female genital mutilation (FGM) in Somaliland.
In 2018 she founded the Solace for Somaliland Girls Foundation, which aims to end the practice through education and awareness campaigns. The group established the first anti-FGM group in Somaliland as a result. Whilst many Somali people associate FGM with Sharia, Ali alongside doctors and a growing number of religious leaders believe it to be a cultural phenomenon, which can be altered. Ali, as well as her three sisters, are survivors of FGM.
In 2020, Ubah Ali was part of the BBC’s list of the 100 most influential women in the world.
