Indian Army officer Major Abhilasha Barak, deployed under the United Nations peace mission in Lebanon, will receive the 2025 “United Nations Military Gender Advocate of the Year Award” for her work in the empowerment of women and adolescent girls and gender sensitisation during the mission.
Major Barak, an Indian peacekeeper serving under the United Nations mission in Lebanon, has been selected for the 2025 “United Nations Military Gender Advocate of the Year Award” in recognition of her outreach work among women and girls in Lebanon. During her deployment, she actively engaged with women and adolescent girls in local communities to strengthen peacebuilding efforts and organised gender-sensitisation training for United Nations peacekeepers.
Major Abhilasha Barak, an officer of the Indian Army deployed under the United Nations peace mission in Lebanon, has been selected for the 2025 “United Nations Military Gender Advocate of the Year Award”. The international honour is awarded to military peacekeepers who have contributed to promoting women’s participation, safety and gender equality in their areas of operation.
The announcement was made by the United Nations Department of Peace Operations.
Major Barak is currently serving with the Indian battalion of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) as Commander of the Female Engagement Team (FET). During her tenure, she conducted several outreach programmes aimed at raising awareness among local women and adolescent girls.
Her activities included establishing community dialogue with women and young women, conducting awareness campaigns on education, safety and health-related issues, organising gender-sensitisation training for peacekeepers, and developing trusted relationships with local communities.
These efforts increased women’s participation at the local level and strengthened gender perspectives in peace operations.
Major Abhilasha Barak is also the first female combat helicopter pilot in the Indian Army. The award will be presented on May 29 at United Nations Headquarters on the occasion of International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers.
With this honour, Major Barak will become the third Indian officer to receive the global award. Previous Indian recipients include Major Suman Gawani (2019) in South Sudan and Major Radhika Sen (2023) in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
The award was instituted in 2016 by the United Nations Office of Military Affairs under peace operations. Its objective is to recognise military peacekeepers who actively implement the principles of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security, with a focus on strengthening women’s roles in conflict areas and increasing their participation in peace processes.
