Capt. Ngan’s working day at UNISFA is quite hard. As a supply officer, she usually has to inspect units located outside the mission headquarters. She sometimes stays at the units for two or three days and prepares food and drinks by herself. Especially, there remain conflicts in Abyei with complicated security situations, seriously affecting the military supply to units inside and outside the headquarters.
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Sr. Capt. Pham Thi Mai Ngan does charity work in a hospital in Abyei. |
In this situation, Ngan and her colleagues must always store enough food for the units in case of any emergency situation. This is a very difficult task because Abyei is an isolated area with no harbor. Food containers are transported by road to Abyei, and the transportation takes time.
In the rainy season, it is difficult to travel by road; therefore, food must be delivered to units by helicopter. Food supply work to military units is an important task for the operation of the mission as well as U.N. peacekeeping forces of participating countries, requiring Mai Ngan and other officers to be on duty all the time to respond to any emergency situations.
With great honor and responsibility of Vietnamese military officers participating in international service, Capt. Mai Ngan is always wholehearted during task implementation. She thinks that she must always accomplish all assigned tasks with the best outcomes, not only because she is the first female military supply officer in Vietnam to participate in U.N. peacekeeping missions, but also because of the responsibility of Vietnamese people, an officer of the Vietnam People’s Army, ready to do everything to bring a peaceful and happy life to people worldwide.
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Sr. Capt. Pham Thi Mai Ngan takes care of the okra garden in the barracks in Abyei. |
In addition, she also joins charity activities, and together with the Engineering Company Rotation 2 provides free health check-ups to local people.
Thanks to her mastery of English, Mai Ngan also acts as an MC and interpreter at important events at the mission.
Despite the harsh weather conditions in Abyei, Ngan still spends time growing vegetables. The image of Capt. Mai Ngan at the UNISFA mission contributes to promoting the image of Vietnamese women in the current context.
Translated by Minh Anh