October 8, 2025
By Tobi Akinnubi
A proud moment for Nigeria and the Yoruba nation as Olukemi Ibikunle, a distinguished Yoruba corrections officer, has won the 2025 United Nations Trailblazer Award for Women Justice and Corrections Officers in New York.
The United Nations Department of Peace Operations (DPO) announced that Ibikunle, who hails from the Yoruba ethnic group in southwestern Nigeria, received the global honour for her exceptional contribution to prison reform and correctional service within the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO).
The award, which will be formally presented on Wednesday, October 8, 2025, by the UN Deputy Secretary-General, celebrates women breaking boundaries in peacekeeping, justice, and corrections work around the world.
As the Corrections Unit Engineer at MONUSCO, Ibikunle has distinguished herself in a traditionally male-dominated field, leading transformative prison infrastructure and rehabilitation projects. Her work promotes dignity, safety, and rehabilitation for inmates while strengthening national institutions and aligning prison standards with international best practices.
Driven by her belief that “peace begins behind prison walls,” the Yoruba-born officer has worked tirelessly to humanize correctional systems through innovation and compassion.
Ibikunle first served with MONUSCO between 2020 and 2022, and redeployed to the mission in 2023. Among her key achievements are the development of a high-security prison block in Kabare for high-risk detainees, the creation of a model prison blueprint for the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the Biogas Initiative at Uvira Prison, which converts waste into clean energy while providing inmates with vocational skills.
Established in 2022, the United Nations Trailblazer Award honours the outstanding contributions of women justice and corrections officers deployed in peace operations, challenging gender barriers and celebrating women who redefine leadership in global security and justice systems.
