U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio pictured with Zabib Musa Loro Bakhit (right) at the IWOC award. (Photo: AP)

WASHINGTON, (Eye Radio) – Zabib Musa Loro Bakhit, a South Sudanese women’s rights leader, is among eight women from around the world that the U.S. First Lady Melania Trump recognized at the International Women of Courage (IWOC) Awards ceremony on Tuesday.

The IWOC Award, organized by the U.S. Department of State, recognizes women from around the world who have demonstrated exceptional courage, strength, and leadership – often at great personal risk and sacrifice.

South Sudanese Zabib Musa has more than 10 years of experience in fragile, post-conflict, and resource-poor settings, and has held several leadership positions at the national and regional levels, including as Regional Board Member to the Strategic Initiative in the Horn of Africa Network, and Chairperson of the Network of Aids Service Organizations on South Sudan.

She also served as Chairperson of the East African National Network of Health Service Organizations, and member of the NGO Forum Steering Committee, convenor of the Women Human Rights Defenders Network, and co-initiator of the Local Response Pool Fund.

Ms. Bakhit is the founder and Executive Director of Women for Justice and Equality, the leading implementer of Women, Peace and Security programming at the grassroots level across South Sudan.

Since 2007, the Department of State has recognized more than 200 women from over 90 countries with the IWOC Award.

Other recipients include Henriette Da, a human rights defender from Burkina Faso, Amit Soussana, a lawyer from Israel, who survived the October 7 attack by Palestinian militants Hamas, and Major Velena Iga, a women’s rights defender from Papua New Guinea.

Others are , Georgiana Pascu – a Romanian human rights advocate, Namini Wijedasa – a Sri Lankan award-winning journalist, and Amat Al-Salam Al-Hajj an advocate for families of abducted people in Yemen.

“These extraordinary women illuminate the transformative power of love in shaping our world. Their journeys remind us that true courage is born from a deep commitment to others, showing the love fuels the call for justice,” said First Lady Melania Trump during a ceremony.