Rwanda National Police

Sixty Police Gender Focal Persons drawn from all units of the force, on Friday, completed a five-day Training of Trainers (ToT) course.

The training was organized to have a critical mass of skilled and knowledgeable personnel in all Police units and schools, to drive the ideals of gender mainstreaming in their deployments.

The Commissioner for Human Resources and Development in Rwanda National Police (RNP), Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Yahaya Kamunuga, while closing the training, said that gender equality is a national and international policy, which the force strives to realize in all its policing aspects.

"Gender equality is not only a women affair; it involves both men and women to work together," ACP Kamunuga said.

He urged them to share the acquired knowledge with those in their units and in their communities to well understand gender mainstreaming and strive to promote it as men and women.

He noted that men and women have equal rights and that equality is crucial in development.

Senior Sargeant Jean Marie Vianney Bizimana, one of the trainees, said that they understood the concept of gender equality and their role as men in gender promotion.

"Some of us had little knowledge on gender mainstreaming, we acquire the same Police training and same deployments, so we have seen that what we can do as men women can also do it," Bizimana said.

During the course of five days, participants were introduced to the gender concept, UN resolutions and International gender frameworks, and the application of the Eastern Africa Police Chiefs Cooperation Organization (EAPCCO) gender training manual, among others key issues.

With over 21 percent of the current total force being female officers, the force is working towards meeting the national threshold of 30 percent.

The periodic Police Women Convention and involvement of women in peacekeeping are all geared towards gender mainstreaming.

At least 30 percent of Rwandan peacekeepers around the world are female, including a female-dominated Formed Police Unit (FPU) serving under the UN Mission in South Sudan.

The deployment of female Police officers to peace support operations also reflects Rwandan adherence to international standards in the prompt implementation of the UN Security Council resolution 1325 that stressed the important role women can play in peacekeeping and conflict resolution.

The UN resolution calls for more women in decision-making positions, a gendered perspective to be “mainstreamed” across peacekeeping and for more women to participate in field operations as police and as human rights observers.