On 8 March, International Women’s Day, Major Samia Rehman from Pakistan shares her 8 favourite things about working as a UN peacekeeper. She serves as an operational planning officer with the UN Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO).

Serving under the Blue Helmet and wearing the Pakistani flag in a UN peacekeeping mission is an honour for me. My work is my passion. I believe that if you are a woman of integrity and you love what you do, you will always conquer your fears. You also need commitment, dedication, strength and passion to succeed in this job. As a woman serving outside the borders of my country, I encourage all women to participate in peacekeeping.

Here are 8 things I love about my job:

1. PROTECTING CIVILIANS FROM VIOLENCE

Nothing is more important for me than the laughter on the faces of Congolese children, women, and men. Being a woman, a female peacekeeper, I deeply understand the suffering of Congolese women. I’m working to protect citizens under imminent threat in five provinces in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) — Ituri, North-Kivu, South-Kivu, Tanganiyka and Kasai. I have also worked to protect civilians in Goma, and facilitated the roll-out of a Protection of Civilians toolkit. By deploying peacekeeping troops on the ground, my team and I are making communities in the DRC safe for others to deliver humanitarian assistance. As part of my job, I take measures to ensure security in and around camps for internally displaced persons (IDPs), so that one day they can return home in a manner that is safe, voluntary and dignified.

My work also involves the planning of peacekeeping troops throughout the DRC to help control the violent clashes and disputes between communities, and to deter armed groups from violence. During my planning, I always make sure that we deploy peacekeepers with the right skills and training on the ground to protect civilians. Such sound planning, along with quick and effective responses by ground forces can help promote a calm situation in many regions of the DRC and ultimately keeps communities safer.