Earlier this month, the staff at the British Consulate General in Erbil arrived one morning to find that we had a new Consul General! While we were initially taken aback, once the coffee kicked in, we remembered that it was our annual event: Consul General for a Day.

Each year, to mark the International Day for Women in Diplomacy, we welcome a young woman, aged 18-20, from the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) to the Consulate to shadow the Consul General and learn about the role of a diplomat.

It’s a celebration of the important and often undervalued role that women play in diplomacy all around the world. While studies have shown that peace agreements are longer lasting with women involved in negotiations, only 20% of peace processes currently include women, and fewer than 30% of government ministers globally are women. We can do better. This initiative is one of our small contributions to empowering the next generation of women leaders.

It’s also an opportunity to showcase the work we do to strengthen relations between the UK and the KRI. The CGFD meets the Consulate team, learns about our work, joins us for external engagements, and, hopefully, leaves with a better understanding of the work of the UK in the KRI and fresh inspiration to become a future leader on the world stage.

Introducing CGFD 2025: Warin Paywand

This year’s CGFD was Warin Paywand, a medical student at British International University. Warin impressed our selection panel with her energy, eagerness to learn, and clear vision for how she would use this opportunity to grow.

Warin kicked off her day with a breakfast meeting with the whole Consulate, where she took full advantage of her new role to grill us on what exactly it is we all do. Her insightful questions and clear enthusiasm sparked a lively discussion and set the tone for the busy day ahead.

Down to business

Suitably briefed on the Consulate’s work, Warin then dived straight into her first external meeting with a range of journalists from across the KRI. While many new Consuls General (and Ambassadors) are nervous ahead of their first press event, CGFD Warin was unfazed. She fielded questions with confidence – and even turned the tables on the journalists with some sharp questions of her own! It’s a tactic Consul General Andrew Bizley may look to deploy in his next media engagement.

Next, she joined our Senior International Trade Adviser for a meeting on UK-KRI trade relations. Warin saw firsthand the support the Consulate offers to UK businesses and brands operating in the KRI and learned about the shared priorities between the UK and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) as we work to increase bilateral trade.

Lessons over lunch

After a busy morning, it was time for lunch. We were delighted to be joined by Khanzad Ahmad, Secretary General of the KRG High Council of Women’s Affairs. Khanzad was able to share her experience of leadership as a woman in the KRI and some of the lessons she has learned along the way. Comparing and contrasting Khanzad’s experience with that of our team made for a fascinating discussion.

Warin described the lunch as one of the highlights of her day, and so she was particularly thrilled when afterwards she had her own private meeting with Khanzad and Bizley to talk about career development and what it takes to become a leader.

The final stretch

In the afternoon, Warin joined our Defense Section to learn about our cooperation with the peshmerga. Our defense relationship is important to the UK, and we’re delighted to support the peshmerga with training and military education, including sending some leading women peshmerga to the Royal Military College Sandhurst. It was a great chance for Warin to learn about the breadth of the UK-KRI relationship.

Her final meeting for the day was with local civil society representatives. Warin learned about the importance of diplomats engaging with and supporting nongovernment organizations and the valuable work they do here in the KRI to improve lives of their fellow citizens.

The wrap up

With her busy day of meetings complete, Warin had one final task – one beloved by senior diplomats the world over: filming her wrap up video! You can watch Warin’s video and hear her full summary of her key lessons from the day in her own words on the Consulate General’s social media channels.

From everyone at the Consulate, we would like to say a big thank you to all our external guests who helped make CGFD 2025 so successful. And most of all, we’d like to thank Warin Paywand for being so curious, passionate, and inspiring.

As the world grapples with complex challenges, initiatives like this remind us that the next generation of leaders is already here. They just need a platform – and a little encouragement – to step forward.

Tom Heaps is Head of Political Section at the BritishConsulate General in Erbil.