Shafiyeva was born in 1934 in Baku in the family of teachers. She studied architecture at the Construction Department of Azerbaijan Polytechnic Institute, from which she graduated in 1958. Upon graduation, Shafiyeva proceeded to work at AzerDovlatLayiha, where she moved to the head of projects design group. Between 1975 and 1978, Shafiyeva worked at AzerSvyazProekt (Azerbaijan Communications Design). In 1978-1979 she worked at the Baku branch of Giproteatr, the Institute of Design of Theater Buildings, where she headed the department of architecture and construction. In 1979, she moved to become a design group head at the Department of Typology of Public and Residential Buildings at the Baku branch of Tbilisi Zonal Research Institute for Experimental Architectural Design.

Shafyieva’s projects include hotels and residential buildings in Naftalan resort (1962-1970); entrance pavilion and the underground part of Vokzalnaya (today, “28 May”) metro station (1962); 17-strorey Orgtekhstroy office building in Baku (1965-1967, with Shafiga Zeynalova); buildings at Mardakyan, a resort of the Union of Writers of Azerbaijan (1970), and residential buildings for the workers of the Khudaferin Hydropower Plant on the Araks River in Iran (1981).