A minesweeper in Chad for ten years, Zouleikha Abakar is the first woman to exercise this profession in the country.

As team leader, she is the only one authorized to analyze the objects to be destroyed.

"Zouleikha has an exemplary behavior and she is a very active woman, she is always very motivated and loves her work. We are all convinced that she has a bright future that awaits her" explains Oumda Béchir Niam, national mine clearance supervisor, to journalists from France 24.

If the young woman is now well respected in this essentially male environment, it has not always been easy.

"I chose this profession because I lost my uncle following an accident caused by a mine in 2008. By demining, we save lives, we build the future by reducing the risks and dangers for the community ", underlines the young woman.

"At first it was difficult to be accepted as a woman and team leader, but over time some have understood."

Zouleikha's work will now have to continue in some towns in the north of the country, shaken in recent years by armed conflicts and where the presence of mines and explosive remnants of war has claimed 3,157 victims since 2012.

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