South African police celebrate national women's month

Government of South Africa/Flickr
August 16, 2024

As South Africa celebrates Women’s Month, the spotlight shines on the remarkable women in the South African Police Service (SAPS) who are making significant strides in policing. Among these trailblazers is Lieutenant General Maropeng Johanna Mamotheti, the Divisional Commissioner for Visible Policing and Operations, who has dedicated 36 years to the force.

Lt. General Mamotheti, who began her career as a student constable in 1987, now leads over 19,000 officers in various crucial units, including Public Order Policing, Tactical Response Teams, and Border Policing. Since her promotion in March 2024, she has been instrumental in strategic crime prevention, focusing on visible policing and operations.

Throughout her career, Lt. General Mamotheti has held several key positions, including Deputy Provincial Commissioner for Support Services in the Northern Cape and Component Head for Social Crime Prevention. She is particularly noted for her success in managing firearms control, where she significantly reduced the backlog in firearm licensing and oversaw the destruction of over 263,000 illegal firearms.

Her leadership is a testament to the growing influence of women in policing, as she continues to make South Africa safer, reinforcing the essential role of women in law enforcement. Lt. General Mamotheti's academic achievements, including a BTech in Policing and a Bachelor of Commerce in Human Resource Management, further underscore her commitment and expertise in the field.

As Women’s Month progresses, Lt. General Mamotheti's story serves as an inspiration, highlighting the critical contributions of women in the SAPS and their impact on the safety and security of the nation.

To read the full story, see here

Government of South Africa/Flickr
August 16, 2024

South African police celebrate national women's month

Government of South Africa/Flickr
August 16, 2024

As South Africa celebrates Women’s Month, the spotlight shines on the remarkable women in the South African Police Service (SAPS) who are making significant strides in policing. Among these trailblazers is Lieutenant General Maropeng Johanna Mamotheti, the Divisional Commissioner for Visible Policing and Operations, who has dedicated 36 years to the force.

Lt. General Mamotheti, who began her career as a student constable in 1987, now leads over 19,000 officers in various crucial units, including Public Order Policing, Tactical Response Teams, and Border Policing. Since her promotion in March 2024, she has been instrumental in strategic crime prevention, focusing on visible policing and operations.

Throughout her career, Lt. General Mamotheti has held several key positions, including Deputy Provincial Commissioner for Support Services in the Northern Cape and Component Head for Social Crime Prevention. She is particularly noted for her success in managing firearms control, where she significantly reduced the backlog in firearm licensing and oversaw the destruction of over 263,000 illegal firearms.

Her leadership is a testament to the growing influence of women in policing, as she continues to make South Africa safer, reinforcing the essential role of women in law enforcement. Lt. General Mamotheti's academic achievements, including a BTech in Policing and a Bachelor of Commerce in Human Resource Management, further underscore her commitment and expertise in the field.

As Women’s Month progresses, Lt. General Mamotheti's story serves as an inspiration, highlighting the critical contributions of women in the SAPS and their impact on the safety and security of the nation.

To read the full story, see here

Latest News

Women at the Center of Rwanda’s Peacebuilding and Recovery

NEWS
January 8, 2026

Women have been central to Rwanda’s peacebuilding trajectory since the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi, a period marked by extreme violence, including the systematic use of sexual violence as a tool of genocide

Read News Item

Rwandan Women Peacekeepers Lead Action

NEWS
January 8, 2026

Rwandan Women Peacekeepers Lead Action Against Gender-Based Violence in South Sudan

Read News Item

The Continuing Challenge of Violence Against Women in Rwanda

NEWS
January 8, 2026

Violence against women continues to be a major human rights challenge in Rwanda.

Read News Item

Winnie’s Story - Choosing Policing as my career

NEWS
December 18, 2025

Read News Item

Critical Analysis of Rwanda’s Women, Peace and Security Agenda

NEWS
November 11, 2025

Rwanda has often been cited as a global leader in advancing gender equality, particularly in governance and peace building.

Read News Item

Resilient Leaders, Powerful Mentors: Women in Rwanda’s Security Institutions Inspiring Change

NEWS
October 10, 2025

The Rwanda Defence Force (RDF) and the Rwanda National Police (RNP) are security institutions and platforms of transformation, resilience, and mentorship.

Read News Item

Rwandan Female Police Officers Scaling Heights Of Policing Career

NEWS
May 30, 2019

May 30, 2019: In March 2019, the United Nations expressed its gratitude to a Rwandan Police Officer, Assistant Commissioner of Police, (ACP) Teddy Ruyenzi, for her outstanding role in UN peacekeeping. ACP Ruyenzi, who is among the top most senior police officers at the rank of ACP, leads a trail-blazing force of 160-strong all-female Formed Police Unit (FPU) in the Republic of South Sudan under the United Nations Mission in Southern Sudan (UNMISS).

Read News Item

Rwanda to send all-woman peacekeeping force to South Sudan

NEWS
July 10, 2018

July 9, 2018: Rwanda is set to send an all-female formed police unit for deployment in South Sudan under the UN peacekeeping mission, the Rwandan police said Tuesday. The contingent is the first female team to be sent on a foreign mission by the country.

Read News Item