Aisha Raheem

Saïd Business School, University of Oxford

“Trying to leave the world better than I met it.”

Hometown: Lagos, Nigeria

Fun Fact About Yourself: Swam beside an active volcano in Santorini—surreal, exhilarating, and slightly terrifying!

Undergraduate School and Major: Queen Mary University of London

Most Recent Employer and Job Title: Farmz2u, Chief Executive Officer

Aside from your classmates, what was the key part of Oxford Saïd’s MBA programming that led you to choose this business school and why was it so important to you? The Skoll Centre and the Oxford Africa Business Alliance (OABA). As a Skoll Scholar and a Co-Chair of the OABA, both are critical elements of the career I want to build for myself. For me, all roads lead to building for Africa and doing so in a systematic way is essential.

What course, club, or activity has been your favorite part of the Oxford Saïd MBA experience? Crossfit – the amazing coaching has allowed me to improve my form significantly!

What is the most “Oxford” thing you have done so far as a full-time MBA student? Sat in the reverberating echoes of an acapella folklore concert at Worcester College’s cathedral—pure magic.

Oxford is known as a place where world collides, be it in the classroom or the dining hall. What has been the most interesting interaction you’ve had so far as an Oxford MBA student? Interacting with a student completing a DPhil in the history of disease. A very nuanced and uncommon discipline, the interaction was a reminder that as much as innovation continues to accelerate, it’s still in the echoes of what has been. Maybe that’s why Oxford’s uniqueness comes from how old it is, an old city surrounded by constant change.

Describe your biggest accomplishment in your career so far: We often distill accomplishments into big moments, often forgetting that these rarely happen without the small and regular moments. My biggest career accomplishment is my ability to prioritize the moments I focus on, like providing policy advisory support to Nigeria’s Economic Summit Group as the MSME Thematic Lead whilst also building a supply chain company as CEO.

Describe your biggest accomplishment as an MBA student so far? Successfully supporting the Oxford Africa Business Alliance with a Distinguished Speaker event in January. It was a convening of significant business leaders from Nigeria, including Former Vice President of Nigeria (Yemi Osinbanjo) and Former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria and Current Emir of Kano (Lamido Sanusi). It was an opportunity to explore how stronger capital markets can transform Nigeria and Africa.

What has been the biggest epiphany you’ve gained about yourself or the world since you started your MBA program?  Oxford’s diversity reinforced my view that openness is the bridge to a more inclusive world. At our core, we’re all the same—driven by fears, love, and hope. Openness could go a long way in creating a more inclusive world and I am affirmed of my one core value ‘Be Kind Always’.

© Copyright 2026 Poets & Quants. All rights reserved. This article may not be republished, rewritten or otherwise distributed without written permission. To reprint or license this article or any content from Poets & Quants, please submit your request HERE.