Major Suman Gawani to be awarded UN Military Gender Advocate of the Year Award

Major Suman Gawani: All about the Indian Army officer awarded 2019 United Nations Military Gender Advocate of the Year Award

UN Military Gender Advocate of the Year 2019: Indian Army Officer Major Suman Gawani will be awarded the UN Military Gender Advocate of the Year Award for the year 2019. This will be the first time any Indian peacekeeper will be honored with this award. Major Suman was posted to South Sudan under the United Nations Mission.

Recently he completed his mission. Gawani joined the Indian Army in 2011 where he graduated from Officers Training Academy, and then joined the Army Signal Corps. She hails from Pokhar village of Tehri Garhwal in Uttarakhand.

The award will be presented to Brazilian military officer Commander Carla Monteiro de Castro Araujo, along with Major Suman Gavani, during a web ceremony chaired by UN Secretary-General Guterres on the occasion of United Nations International Peace Service Day on 29 May. Both of these female military peacekeepers were described by UN chief Antonio Guterres as a “powerful role model”.

Major Suman Gawani will be the first Indian peacekeeper to win the award. He is a military observer, who was stationed in South Sudan (UNMISS) some time ago under UN mission. Military observer Suman Gawani has recently completed missions in South Sudan, including completion of his tenure at UNMISS.

What is a UN military gender advocate?

The award was first given in the year 2016, for which the selection process of the winners started in 2015. The main objective of awarding this award is to define and understand a gender perspective as mainstream in a military context for UN peacekeeping operations. It also aims to honor the dedication and effort of individual military peacekeepers to promote UN principles for women.