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Nigerian niqab-wearing chef seeks to break stereotypes about Muslim women

Nigerian chef Sherifah Yunus Olokodana speaks during an interview with Reuters in her studio in Lagos, Nigeria April 7, 2023. REUTERS/Seun Sanni

(This May 4 story has been corrected to change the name of Muslim face veil in the headline and paragraph 1, reword paragraph 1 to clarify that not all Muslim women wear niqabs, and add explanation of hijab in paragraph 5)

Sherifah Yunus Olokodana, an entrepreneur who has carved out a niche as a chef in Lagos, says she is seeking to break stereotypes about Muslim women in Nigeria as she demonstrates cooking on Instagram wearing a niqab face veil.

Aderemi Adisa prepares a meal using local spices made by Nigerian chef Sherifah Yunus Olokodana, in an outdoor kitchen in Lagos, Nigeria April 7, 2023. REUTERS/Seun Sanni

Nigeria is almost evenly divided between the largely Christian south and mainly Muslim north, where cultural norms often discourage women to get into business.

Olokodana, a Yoruba Muslim from the southwest, has been a pastry chef for nearly two decades and sells food spices, but she said she still faced prejudice.

"Being a woman who dresses this way, I have to do 10 times the work of the average woman," she said while preparing for an Instagram cooking show in her studio.

Nigerian chef Sherifah Yunus Olokodana plates a meal in her studio in Lagos, Nigeria April 7, 2023. REUTERS/Seun Sanni

"Women in hijab (headscarves) continue to get negative vibes from people. People who dress the way I'm dressed are looked down upon in Nigeria."

(Reporting by Seun Sanni; writing by MacDonald Dzirutwe; Editing by Leslie Adler)

Nigerian chef Sherifah Yunus Olokodana plates a meal in her studio in Lagos, Nigeria April 7, 2023. REUTERS/Seun Sanni
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