Ibrahim Ahmad Maqari

Sheikh Ibrahim Ahmad Maqari (also spelled Maƙari or Maqary; born 15 September 1976) is a Nigerian Islamic scholar, academic and cleric. He is a professor of Arabic and linguistics who serves as the chief imam of the Abuja National Mosque. Maqari is known for religious teaching, Qurʾānic exegesis, institution building in Islamic education and participation in national religious councils in Nigeria.

Early life and education

Maqary was born September 15, 1976, in Zaria, Kaduna State, Nigeria. He was raised in a Muslim family that valued education. His early education began at local Quranic schools, where he memorized the Quran and learned the fundamentals of Islamic teachings. His parents sent him to further his studies at Islamic institutions across West Africa, including those in Senegal and Mauritania. Maqari completed formal studies at Al-Azhar University, Cairo, graduating from the Department of Arabic Language. Sources indicate he later completed postgraduate study in Nigeria, including a doctorate at Bayero University Kano (PhD, 2009).

Religious leadership and public roles Maqari has served as an imam at the Abuja National Mosque, where, since a 2012/2017 restructuring of the mosque’s leadership, a small group of senior imams have led prayers and delivered Friday sermons on a rotational basis. Media profiles and institutional biographies list Maqari among the senior imams (sometimes described as deputy or co-equal imams) who lead services at the National Mosque in Abuja.

Maqari is also recorded as a member of national Islamic bodies and advisory assemblies, including the Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs and the Assembly of Muslims in Nigeria (as listed in institutional profiles).

Institutional initiatives and philanthropy Maqari is associated with a cluster of educational and philanthropic initiatives often named under the "Tazkiyyah / Tazkiyah" brand (Tazkiyyah Educational Resource Center, Tazkiyah schools and related orphan support schemes). Institutional profiles credit him with founding or chairing multiple education projects, primary/secondary schools and orphan support initiatives.