History was made during the Mashujaa Day celebrations in Kwale when Lieutenant Colonel Faith Mwagandi, a female officer in the Kenya Navy, commanded a guard of honor.
Mwagandi led a parade consisting of troops from the Kenya Defence Forces, including the Kenya Army, Kenya Air Force, and Kenya Navy.
President William Ruto inspected the troops, marking Ms. Mwagandi as the first female senior officer to command a guard of honor at a national event.
She joined the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) in 2007 and became the first female Warship Commander in East Africa, serving from 2019 to 2022.
Mwagandi’s extensive experience includes training at the prestigious Britannia Royal Naval College in the UK and serving on various Kenya Navy vessels, such as KNS Galana, KNS Shupavu, and KNS Shujaa. She also played a crucial role as an instructor at the Kenya Navy Training School and served as a navigating officer on RV Mtafiti.
Notably, she acted as the Principal Warfare Officer during a significant voyage to the Netherlands for the midlife refit of KNS Shujaa.
The KDF highlighted that Mwagandi, an alumna of Moi Girls Eldoret, briefly attended Kenyatta University before switching to a military career. She now serves as Staff Officer 1 (SO1) in charge of Personnel and Administration at the Kenya Navy.
