3 Africans Among 2019 International Women of Courage Award Recipients

Photo: State Department

Office of the Spokesperson
Department of State
Washington, DC
March 5, 2019

On Thursday, March 7, Secretary of State Pompeo will host the Annual International Women of Courage (IWOC) Awards at the U.S. Department of State to honor 10 extraordinary women from around the world. First Lady of the United States Melania Trump will deliver special remarks at the ceremony.

Now in its 13th year, the Secretary of State’s IWOC Award recognizes women around the globe who have demonstrated exceptional courage and leadership in advocating for peace, justice, human rights, gender equality, and women’s empowerment, often at great personal risk and sacrifice. Since the inception of this award in March 2007, the State Department has recognized more than 120 women from more than 65 different countries. U.S. diplomatic missions overseas nominate one woman of courage from their respective host countries. The finalists are selected and approved by senior Department officials.
The 2019 awardees are listed below:

Razia Sultana of Bangladesh
Naw K’nyaw Paw of Burm
*Moumina Houssein Darar of Djibouti*
*Mama Maggie of Egypt*
Colonel Khalida Khalaf Hanna al-Twal of Jordan
Sister Orla Treacy of Ireland
Olivera Lakic of Montenegro
Flor de Maria Vega Zapata of Peru
Marini de Livera of Sri Lanka
*Anna Aloys Henga of Tanzania*

Following the official award ceremony and meetings or interviews with government officials, NGOs, media, and others in Washington, DC, IWOC honorees will travel to individual U.S. cities on the International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP.) American organizations and businesses will host IWOC awardees and collaborate with them on strategies and ideas to empower women both in the United States and abroad. The awardees will reconvene in Los Angeles for a closing ceremony before returning to their home countries.

Moumina Houssein Darar of Djibouti

Photo: State Department

Born in Djibouti City, Djibouti, in 1990, Moumina Houssein Darar is the oldest of nine siblings—six brothers and two sisters. At age 23, she joined the Djiboutian National Police Force and quickly rose through the ranks in a male dominated profession. Ms. Darar trail blazed her way to the exclusive specialty of anti-terrorism investigations, where she consistently serves as the lead investigator for high-profile investigations. Her investigative efforts have led to the conviction and/or deportation of numerous Al-Shabaab terrorists. She enabled Djiboutian National Police (DNP) to thwart several attempted terrorist attacks after the 2014 La Chaumiere bombing in Djibouti City. She has confronted multiple terrorist suspects and hundreds of illegal immigrants, who were initially resistant to being interviewed by a female police officer. Ms. Darar has also worked undercover as a male to advance terrorism investigations. She has faced numerous challenges since joining the Police Force, including threats to her personal safety. Criminals she detained or convicted, when eventually released, would verbally abuse her. She has even been assaulted by children throwing rocks at her in the street, simply because she was a female police officer, and endured other threats simply for being a woman in uniform. Despite the abuse, she has persevered and remains committed to helping her entire community. Besides her passion for bettering the community through her law enforcement efforts, Ms. Darar has been a leader in community service. Four years ago, Moumina developed the idea to start a charitable neighborhood organization to assist children in need, as well as provide other services and assistance to help the local community.


Mama Maggie of Egypt

 Photo: State DepartmentMama Maggie abandoned numerous opportunities provided by her elite upbringing and resisted restrictions against women’s leadership to establish Stephen’s Children (SC), a non-governmental organization that serves the most impoverished urban slums and rural villages in Egypt regardless of their color, creed, or faith. From its humble beginnings in a Cairo slum, SC has grown to a nationwide Christian institution that feeds, clothes, educates, and mentors children, as well as providing vocational training for adults with a program for empowering women and young ladies. Mama Maggie and SC save children’s lives daily in Egypt, a country of almost 100 million, nearly half of whom live in poverty. She has laid the educational foundation and provided economic salvation for tens of thousands of impoverished children. In addition to multiple nominations for the Nobel Peace Prize, Mama Maggie is the recipient of numerous Egyptian and international humanitarian awards. Frequently called “the Mother Teresa of Egypt,” Mama Maggie has worked to overcome the pressure of family and societal norms placed upon women of her class to establish an institution that incorporates the poor and forgotten into the Egyptian education system and economy.


Anna Aloys Henga of Tanzania 

 Photo: State Department

Anna Henga is a Tanzanian lawyer, passionate human rights activist, and the Executive Director of
the Legal and Human Rights Centre (LHRC). She has dedicated her entire professional career to advancing human rights in Tanzania with a particular focus on women and children. Highlights of Ms. Henga’s work include coordinating Tanzania’s Anti-Female Genital Mutilation Coalition, mobilizing the Southern Africa Legal Assistance Network to defend the human rights of women in Maasai communities, and proactively encouraging women candidates to run for office during the 2015 general election cycle, which resulted in several successful campaigns. She has also played an influential role in publicly voicing concern over the direction of democratic governance through adverse legislative and constitutional actions in her country.