Amina Abdulkadir, a researcher from the Peace and Development Research Centre (PDRC), has won the inaugural Women Peacebuilder for Water (WPW) Prize for her contribution towards the resolution of water-related conflicts in Puntland.

Amina, 31, accepted the award on September 27 in Milan, Italy, during the first annual ‘Rules of Water, Rules for Life’ summit, organized by Milan Global, and the Milan Center for Food Law and Policy. She was selected from a pool of ten finalists from Finland, Haiti, Italy, Kenya, Sudan, Somalia, Switzerland, Trinidad and Tobago, and the United States.

The WPW Award was established to honour women whose efforts help build peace in situations where water, as a resource, is a conflict factor. The Award also aims to redraw focus to UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace, and Security. Amina was lauded for her peacebuilding efforts, and particularly for advocating the work of women as peace actors in resolving conflicts between local communities in Puntland, many of which are caused by issues surrounding the sharing of resources such as land and water.

PDRC is Interpeace’s partner organization in Puntland. The organisation has played a key role in the decentralization process to local authorities and bridging the gap between the local communities and the leadership.

Amina Abdulkadir receives the WPW Prize from Diana Bracco, President of the Milan Foundation for Expo. Photo credit: ANSA

The entire Interpeace family congratulates Amina for providing the much-valued leadership and wisdom of women in building lasting peace.