Babikir Badri

Badri (1856 – 1954) was a Mahdist warrior who became a social activist and worked towards creating the means for women’s education in the Sudan. Badri was present at the battle of Omdurman, where the Mahdist army was destroyed. After the battle, he migrated to Rufaa, a small town in the region of the Blue Nile, where he founded the first school for girls in Sudan in 1907 and named it Al Ahfad. Initially, it took place at his home, consisting of the daughters of neighbours. The school was inspected by Currie, the Condominium Director of Education, and found satisfactory, receiving a subsidy thereafter. His ideas about girls’ education were strongly opposed by Sudanese elderly who were suspicious of idea of sending girls to school. The main direction of the schooling was towards better nutrition and healthcare to ensure healthier children. His son, Yusuf Badri, later transformed the school into Al Ahfad University for Girls and continued his father’s work. His autobiography, My Life, is considered as a Sudanese classic and an important reference on the Sudan history in the Mahdiste era and during the British colonization.