Dozens of female communication professionals from U.S. Africa Command and multiple African militaries came together during a two-day, virtual symposium Sept. 9-10.
"The J-69 Women's Communication Symposium gives us an opportunity to work closely with our partner nations to promote peace, security, and open information sharing,” said Malgorzata Makuchowski, military-to-military manager. “Through a series of presentations and panel discussions, this virtual engagement will address not just the importance of cybersecurity strategies and secure information sharing, but also the role of gender in mission planning and violence prevention.”
Despite COVID-related limitations, the virtual event highlighted U.S. Africa Command’s commitment to partnership through the event headlined ‘enhancing cooperation through secure interoperability and women, peace, and security Initiatives.’
Delegates from AFRICOM, including cyber operations planners, met with African representatives from Burkina Faso, Chad, Botswana, Ghana, Malawi, Rwanda, and Uganda to strengthen partner networks.
“Our goal is to build partner capacity by exchanging information with our African partners and empowering women to find their voice, and understand their contributions to peacekeeping," Makuchowski said.