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- Major Sania Safdar serves as force signal officer at UN peacekeeping force in Cyprus
- Her tasks in Cyprus involve overseeing communication systems, promoting gender equality
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Army’s Major Sania Safdar on Wednesday became the first UN peacekeeper in Cyprus to win the 2023 ‘Certificate of Recognition’ for advocating gender equality, the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) said.
Major Safdar is currently serving as the mission’s force signal officer, the UNFICYP said in a post. The award, issued by the New York-based UN Department for Peace Operations, was presented to her by the special representative of the UN secretary-general in Cyprus, Colin Stewart.
“Receiving this certificate as the first peacekeeper from UNFICYP is deeply meaningful to me and significant for our mission in Cyprus,” Safdar said in a statement. “It serves as a testament to our commitment to gender equality.”
Created in 2016, the “UN Military Gender Advocate of the Year Award” recognizes the dedication and efforts of an individual military peacekeeper in promoting the principles of UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security (WPS).
Her primary tasks in Cyprus involve overseeing communication systems and promoting gender equality within the military component. Since her deployment to the mission in Cyprus last year, she has proactively taken charge of several initiatives by focusing on integrating the Women, Peace, and Security Agenda into military components of the mission’s work, the UNFICYP said.
“As the Mission’s Force Signal Officer serving in the Field Technology Section, she was also involved in strengthening the effectiveness of joint patrols by incorporating communication tools to enhance military operations on the ground while promoting gender representation in the military,” the UNFICYP said.
Since 1960, Pakistan has been one of the main troops and police contributors to the UN peace operations, with more than 200,000 Pakistani men and women sent to 46 UN missions. The South Asian country is currently contributing over 4,000 troops to various international operations carried out by the UN and has lost 172 soldiers in total to UN peace missions.