From employee to entrepreneurship lessons with Abu Bakar Ismail.

Somali Professionals Podcast

This week we are excited to chat with Abu Bakar Ismail. Tune in to hear his full story. Abu Bakar Ismail is the founder of Riyo Reality, a boutique advisory firm that advances the strategic business and communication interest of private and public stakeholders across the Middle East and Africa. He currently works with the Statistics Centre Abu Dhabi to promote the culture of data and statistics in the emirates and across the UAE. Prior to setting up his firm, Abu Bakar spent 18 years supporting clients develop and grow their market share in the Energy, Healthcare, Technology and Education sector. Abu Bakar is also a co-founder of SomaliPN, a platform that mentors and connects professionals, entrepreneurs, business owners and students across 6 continents. Just after high school, Abu Bakar spent two years working with humanitarian organizations such as UNDP, Save the Children and WHO in East Africa – which greatly influenced his passion for giving back to society and the empowering youths. Abu Bakar speaks English and Arabic, Somali, Swahili and a little bit of Urdu and Dutch.