Some say life begins at thirty. At that age, most folks are settling into their careers, starting families, or adding to their educations, with many of them living not too far from home.

Somehow, Sergeant Josephine Dei Kotei never received that particular memo. And for that, citizens who find themselves behind bars shall be grateful.

“If you would have told me a decade ago that I would one day be in a place called Malakal, in South Sudan receiving a United Nations medal, I would have probably laughed it off. I mean, what are the odds?”

Sergeant Josephine Dei Kotei, now 30 years old, decided early on that she would become a nurse in her native Ghana. Her nurturing personality made her want to care for those in need, and to serve them while at their weakest.

Josephine ended up replacing patients with prisoners. She became a corrections officer, a profession which also brings out the best of her helpful nature.

“I didn’t become a nurse, but my work still involves caring. I’m taking care of detainees, ensuring that they are treated humanely, given their day in court and inspired towards a positive change in behaviour,” she says. “You would be surprised to know that some of them are not even aware that what they committed was a crime.”

The “them” Sergeant Dei Kotei refers to belong to a special subset of the population: the internally displaced persons staying within the peacekeeping mission’s protection of civilians site in Malakal. Together with UN Police and the rest of the team of corrections officers, Josephine works around the clock to ensure that law and order is maintained in this area.

While most calm, her job does come with a certain level of risk. From time to time, a disgruntled detainee or family member becomes aggressive: verbally, physically, or both. At which point officers from the Rwandan Formed Police Unit would intervene to protect the correction officers.

Such potentially traumatic incidents have not, however, stopped the soft-spoken yet confident Sergeant from ably carrying out her duties.

“Despite the challenges that come with this environment, working with the United Nations is a privilege for me. As a woman it is a good opportunity for me to rise and demonstrate that I can do exactly or even more than what my male counterparts do, in whatever sector and at whatever level, with no excuses,” she says matter-of-factly.

Her work as a record keeper in the prison department in Ghana is a far cry from the tasks she performs in South Sudan. The learning curve has been steep, but, as evidenced by her receipt of a UN medal for her service, the youngest peacekeeper working in the Malakal detention centre has continued to excel.

Inspector Charity Irungu, Commander of detention facility, did not hold back as she praised her team of medalists: ten corrections officers representing five different countries.

“I have followed, with great satisfaction, the performance of the staff. They all display the utmost professionalism not just while working here at the detention centre, but also when they support fellow officers of the National Prison Service and the Malakal Prison,” she said.

And with that, Sergeant Josephine Dei Kotei and her colleagues beamed and saluted with pride as medals with blue and white ribbons were pinned onto their lapels by Ms. Anu Melkko, Chief of the peacekeeping mission’s corrections officers.

“I would not have achieved this without the able leadership, directives and support from those above me and the teamwork and collaboration with those who work beside me,” says Josephine.

Every year, on 29 May, the United Nations pays tribute to the men and women who have served in peacekeeping operations. This year’s theme revolves around leveraging the power of the youth to promote peace and security.

With that being the case, Josephine and other young, dedicated peacekeepers are being paid a particularly special tribute in 2021. Hats off for them.