Alumni In Focus

In our Alumni in Focus segment this month, we would like to feature one of our female alumna from Guinea Bissau- Miss Aminata. She has worked with Guinea Bissau National Police for the past twenty-six years and currently serves as a superintendent of police. She participated in the recent Leadership for Law Enforcement Supervisor’s course and was happy to share her impressions on the course.

Briefly introduce yourself and tell us about your law enforcement career.

My name is Miss Aminata and I am the Director of the Legal and Judicial Department of the Guinea Bissau National Police. I am also the President of the Commission of Women of Security Force in Guinea Bissau.

What were your expectations of the course and how have they been met?

When I was nominated to attend this course, I looked forward to learning new principles on leadership that will enable me cause changes in my agency. I was also eager to share and inspire my colleagues with the knowledge learned from the course. After the first module on the DISC personality profiles, I knew I was in the right place! The personality test results revealed to me exactly who I was and how I could leverage my strengths and weakness to achieve success in my career. Reviewing and finding out that my personality test results were accurate helped me settle so well into the course.

What has been the most beneficial aspect of the course?

I really enjoyed the modules on communication skills and conflict management. I believe every leader needs effective communication skills to achieve results. The conflict management modules also taught me how to resolve conflicts between co-workers and achieve success in a harmonious work environment. Conflicts are bound to arise where there is diversity and the course equipped me with the tools needed to handle situations.

How do you hope to implement change in your agency with your major takeaways from the course?

First of all, I will start practicing all that I have learned immediately I return. This will drive change from my department to other departments. Secondly, I hope to convene a meeting of all officers occupying a supervisory role and share my knowledge with them. I will particularly highlight the conflict management techniques and share the best practices on managing conflicts at the workplace. I believe these will help all officers to work well with people who don’t act the way they do.

If you could recommend any follow up training, what topic would be most relevant to you?

Conflict Management! Managing gender-based conflicts! As a female law enforcement officer, heading an entire department, I often encounter people who refuse to collaborate with me just because they feel a male should occupy my position!

I would be happy to attend an advanced leadership course specifically designed for female law enforcement supervisors.

What are your overall thoughts on the training?

This was my first training at the RTC and I can say is one of the best trainings I have attended in my law enforcement career. I found the RTC staff very supportive and the course material very relevant.

I would however like to propose that a quota is given for women participation in the next course.

At the RTC, we get to interact with great personalities like Miss Aminata. If you would like to be featured in our monthly newsletter, please feel free to write back to us at info@westafricartc.org