By Patricia Mollyne Mataga
It’s a new dawn in the leadership of the Kenyan military following the latest changes announced by President William Ruto on Thursday, May 2, 2024.
Aside from naming the new Chief of Defense Forces (CDF), the President also made several appointments and promotions, the key of them being one that will see a female service commander installed.
In the changes, Maj-Gen Fatuma Gaiti Ahmed was posted to the Kenya Air Force and appointed Commander.
She becomes the first female commander in the military, a development that digital strategist Denis Itumbi hailed.
“History made with the appointment of a female service commander well done Commander-In-Chief, President William Samoei Ruto. We have heard over the years that women cannot rise through the ranks – myth destroyed,” Itumbi said.
Maj-Gen Fatuma Gaiti Ahmed first made the headlines in 2015 when then-President Uhuru Kenyatta promoted her to the rank of Brigadier.
At the time, she had served in the military for 32 years. She joined the military in 1983 and was commissioned to the rank of Second Lieutenant in 1985, after which she was posted to the Kenya Air Force.
Several years later, she was promoted to the rank of Major General, that is in 2021, further solidifying her remarkable career.
She became the first woman to ever rise to rank in the Kenyan military.
Two years later, Maj-Gen Fatuma Gaiti Ahmed was appointed as the Senior Directing Staff Air by President William Ruto. She has also served as a Battalion Second in Command Staff Officer II Audit Personnel and Records.
The new Kenya Air Force commander is a graduate of the National Defence College and an alumni of the Defence Staff College where she graduated in July 2000.
She holds a Diploma in Management from Strathmore University College.
