Oluyemi Orija
Executive Director, Headfort Foundation for Justice

Oluyemi Orija is a Nigerian legal practitioner with 12 years of experience in criminal and civil litigation. Beyond the courtroom, she has dedicated six years to the development sector and serves as Vice-Chairman, Board of Trustees at the World Commerce and Contracting Foundation, USA. She holds a Law degree from Ekiti State University, Nigeria, and a Master’s in Law from the University of South Wales, UK.

As the Founder and Executive Director of Headfort Foundation for Justice, Oluyemi is bridging Nigeria’s justice gap through legal aid, human rights advocacy, policy reforms, and technology.

Under her leadership, the foundation has provided legal aid to over 800 indigent and wrongly imprisoned inmates and developed a digital platform connecting victims of human rights abuses to pro bono lawyers. To enhance legal literacy, she translated Chapter 4 of Nigeria’s Constitution into five indigenous languages and trained over 5,000 Nigerians on human rights.

Oluyemi also played a pivotal role in prison reform, coordinating a stakeholder dialogue that brought together Lagos State legislators, judiciary representatives, and civil society organisations to discuss the Lagos State Correction Law.

Her work has earned national and international recognition, including being named one of BBC’s 100 Most Influential and Inspirational Women (2021), honored by Nas Daily Media as the kindest lawyer in the world (2022), and awarded the Youth Innovation Award (Human Rights and Peace Category) by the European Union and Kingdom of Netherlands (2024). She is passionate about human rights, access to justice, conflict resolution, and strengthening institutions.