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President William Ruto has appointed Kenya’s first-ever female Service Commander.

02 May, 2024
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Kenya's President William Ruto has appointed the first female commander of the air force.


Maj Gen Fatuma Gaiti Ahmed becomes the first woman in Kenya's history to head one of the military services.

She was appointed alongside other leaders including a new head of the armed forces, following the death of the military chief and others in a helicopter crash last month. Gen Charles Kahariri was promoted to take the vacant position. 

Maj Gen Ahmed has previously held other firsts in the military leadership that is dominated by men - she was the first woman to rise to the rank of brigadier and major general.

She joined the military in 1983, serving under the Women Service Corps, a woman-only outfit that operated as a separate entity from the other arms of the defence forces.

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