- US Embassy Nairobi Chargé d’Affaires ad interim Eric Watnik said for too long, throughout the world, women have been noticeably and woefully absent in the rooms where the national interest are discussed.
- It reflects American values and contributes to advancing democracy and human rights, economic development, and international peace and security.
Security leaders have said more women should be recruited and deployed to key roles in the management of security in the region.
This is because women, among others, possess unique skills that have largely not been used to address various needs in security.
Laurie Freeman, Deputy Director for Counterterrorism Programs, US Department of State told a top security meeting in Nairobi there is a gap in the role women play in for example counterterrorism hence need to bridge it.
“From our experience, women play a key role in the management of security issues hence need to embrace and make use of them in all ranks. They need to be promoted to higher decision-making ranks,” she said.
She added the roles women play in society at large are important and hence the need for them to be used in law enforcement, security, and counterterrorism in particular.
US Embassy Nairobi Chargé d’Affaires ad interim Eric Watnik said for too long, throughout the world, women have been noticeably and woefully absent in the rooms where the national interest are discussed.
“The United States is leading the fight to help change that. And I am particularly proud to note that Meg Whitman, nominated to be the next Ambassador, will be if confirmed, the fourth female United States Ambassador to Kenya, showing that our commitment to gender equality and inclusiveness is decades long.”
Watnik told a Women in Peace and Security Forum their gathering was an important, concrete step in engaging women in meaningful participation in decision-making processes related to conflict and crises.
“It puts the US commitment to gender equality into practice. Implicit in the term “National Security” is the inclusion of the entirety of a nation’s assets and interests, and most of all, its people.”
He added that for more than two decades, the United States Department of State had made gender equality and women empowerment a key component of US foreign policy.
This, he said, reflects American values and contributes to advancing democracy and human rights, economic development, and international peace and security.
He quoted President Joe Biden having stated that, “When women are engaged fully in building and maintaining peace and security in their countries, we see more sustainable and more equitable outcomes, less conflict, and longer-lasting peace agreements.”
Watnik argued Kenya has many outstanding examples to offer – from the All-Female Special Weapons and Tactics Team, which is providing security for this event –to Team Lioness, an all-female ranger program helping to protect Kenya’s rich and varied wildlife and the people who live around and with it.
They spoke when she addressed an Africa Regional Symposium on Women in Security in Nairobi.
The weeklong symposium was organised by the US Department of Justice, the US Department of State and the Government of Kenya.
The gathering, attended by approximately 70 security and law enforcement professionals from nine nations, amplifies regional and strategic objectives of empowering women as meaningful, essential contributors to security, law enforcement, and counterterrorism.
The symposium also provides a forum for women from multiple nations to undertake career-development training, engage in networking opportunities, and bolster the advancement of women in law enforcement while promoting counterterrorism efforts.
The symposium includes participants from Albania, Ghana, Kenya, Niger, Senegal, Somalia, Tunisia, the United Kingdom and the United States.
In addition, the symposium provides opportunities for senior men and women in U.S. and international security careers to have meaningful interactions with women in the security professions in multiple African nations.
Women security professionals widen the pool of talented candidates for demanding careers and provide unique abilities to interact with at-risk communities.
Heather Rauch, Acting Assistant Director for the International Criminal Investigative Training Assistance Program, U.S. Department of Justice also addressed the meeting underscoring the need for more women to be used in the management of security issues.
Top security officials from various security agencies in Kenya also addressed the symposium and pledged to ensure more women's empowerment.