Now serving as a trainer, Inspr. Stephen is a key part of the mission’s police component capacity-building mandate. Her typical day involves reviewing and projecting work in the mission’s conference rooms, where she and her colleagues collaborate to identify training gaps.
Crucially, she emphasises that this is not an external curriculum being imposed on the SPF.
“The training team of the SPF and the leadership at General Kahiye Police Academy bring in their priorities,” Inspr. Stephen said. “We contribute to develop and implement them. It is a Somali-led process.”
She was selected as a trainer after the mission identified her legal background and decided to leverage her specialised knowledge and skills.
Inspr. Stephen, a 2016 Law graduate from the University of Nigeria, completed her practical legal training at the Nigerian Law School, a mandatory milestone for those aiming to be barristers and solicitors in Nigeria.
Her legal background has proven essential in her current role at AUSSOM. In a mission where the Rule of Law is the ultimate objective, Inspr. Stephen uses her legal experience to ensure that SPF curriculum development is not only tactically sound but also grounded in international legal standards and human rights.
One of the most visible impacts of Stephen’s work is in community policing, noting that the relationship between the public and the police can often be strained by a history of mistrust.
“During trainings, we bring together police personnel and community safety volunteers,” Inspr. Stephen said. “You could visibly see that the civilian trust for the police was threatened. Now, civilians are beginning to see police as partners rather than adversaries.”
Her perspective was further broadened by specialised workshop in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on the Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) Agenda in February 2026. This experience allowed her to integrate gender perspectives into operational planning, a critical component for inclusive stabilisation in Africa.
“My belief is reinforced: peace and stability in Africa depend on inclusive, well-informed and strategically planned interventions,” Inspr. Stephen said.
Working in a mission with limited personnel, specifically the limited presence of Individual Police Officers (IPOs), requires agility. To fill critical gaps, the AUSSOM leadership has redeployed talented and professional officers like Inspr. Stephen from the AUSSOM sectors to the police headquarters in Mogadishu.
She credits her smooth adaptation to intensive pre-mission training she received in Nigeria and the “multidimensional” nature of the mission, where collaborating with civilian and military components is vital.
During this deployment in Somalia, Inspr. Stephen carries more than just operational experience. She takes with her a deeper appreciation for multinational teamwork.
“The mission is not only about operations; it’s about building friendship and lasting relationships,” said Inspr. Stephen. “Working in a multinational setting like AUSSOM has built my courage. I will take that humility, teamwork, and professionalism back to my duties in Nigeria.”
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of African Union Support and Stabilization Mission in Somalia (AUSSOM).
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