Encomium
Nigerian peacekeepers serving with the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) were awarded the United Nations medal on 18 April.
The Deputy Chief of the United Nations Police Component (UNPOL), Brigadier General Jean François VOILLOT, presided over the ceremonythat was held in the historic city of Timbuktu.
The medal recipients, including 40 women, were members of the Nigerian Formed Police Unit (FPU).
The UN medal rewards the courage and commitment of peacekeepers who have spent 90 days in MINUSMA, particularly in northern Mali, in the service of peace.
Given the current context of the region, and in accordance with its mandate, this unit of the UN Police conducts daily, long and medium range patrols with the Malian Defense and Security Forces (FDSM), including the Police and the Gendarmerie, in the city of Timbuktu and the surrounding villages. It conducts escorts and security operations allowing people to go about their business in serenity.
UNPOL Deputy Chief Voillot congratulated the recipients for the professionalism that allowed them to honorably perform their missions with determination and integrity “You will receive the UN medal which is both a testimony and a mark of recognition of the international community for your participation in the efforts and work done for the stabilization and maintenance of peace in Mali,” he said.
The ceremony was held at the UN Mission Integrated Camp, in the presence of Acting Head of Office Mamane Sani Moussa, UN Force Commander for Sector West, UNPOL Regional Commander Colonel Chérif Sami, representatives of the local and administrative authorities of Timbuktu and Taoudeni, as well as the hierarchy of the Defense and Security Forces of Mali (FDSM).
