Three years after she became the first woman brigadier in the country, Fatuma Ahmed has scored another first.
She has been promoted to the coveted position of major general and this could place her in line to one day becoming chief of Kenya Defence Forces.
A soft-spoken woman with an iron will, she joined the military “by accident” in 1983, when she chanced upon a recruitment drive in Meru while applying for an ID card.
She was originally a member of the women-only Kenyan Women Service Corps. She transferred to the Air Force when the unit was absorbed into the three armed services in 1999. Her star has risen fast in recent reshuffles.
The history maker was sworn in on Friday among other military chiefs at State House, Nairobi, in what President Uhuru Kenyatta described as “an honour for the country”. “I’m counting on you to be a role model to the women in this republic,” Uhuru told her.
Indeed, Fatuma stands out in a country where all the top commanders in the Navy, Air Force and Army, the Chief of Defence Forces and head of National Defence College, are men.
Despite a two-thirds gender rule in public service recruitment, Global Fire Power — a site that ranks armies according to their strengths — estimates that the Kenya Defence Forces has only about 1,000 women out of more than 30,000 personnel.
The Star reported in February that 30 women in Kwale and hundreds in Samburu had been turned away during recruitment, with officers implying they were weak.
A senior military officer, who did not wish to be named, said, “Military service is a peculiar profession. You can’t sacrifice the numbers in terms of defence and strength of the service. We are not people who will do internal jobs. Our job means lives on the line, and we know women have their own challenges.
“If you have many of them then find that a quarter are pregnant and others with various issues, what will that mean to the personnel manning a particular area? If you took 100 women to Somalia and [they] are killed there, what do you say?”
Mercy Lolki, one of the candidates barred at Kenyatta Stadium in Samburu, said, “I came here very early in the morning looking for a KDF job but was told ladies would not be selected in this recruitment. They told us that our chance will come next time.”
By promoting Fatuma to the unprecedented heights, Uhuru is hoping to break the glass ceiling. “Let other women see that there are no limits. May you be a great inspiration and guide of console everywhere,” he said.
