Tanwa Ashiru has broken glass ceilings in every way, walking the paths less traveled by women, especially millennials.
She has experience serving in the US military and has used that experience to influence change, regardless of gender stereotypes and social and institutional barriers that prevent women from achieving their career goals and becoming all they can be. they aspire to be
Background of Tanwa
Tanwa grew up in Lagos and attended secondary school at the Federal Government College, Ijanikin, Lagos. After high school, he traveled to the United States to attend college and ended up joining the military due to the great educational benefits, among others.
His two older brothers were also serving in the US Army, so he got the support of his parents. That’s how she ended up earning a master’s degree in Intelligence Studies from the American Military University (AMU) School of Security and Global Studies in West Virginia, graduating in 2016.
After graduation, he served six and a half years in the Air Force, paid off all of his academic debt, and then began enjoying veteran’s benefits.
Once his six-and-a-half-year term was up, he had the option of re-enlisting for four more years until completing a 20-year career or taking an honorable discharge from the military. She chose to start her life as a civilian and a veteran.
She is now a veteran US Air Force officer with more than 14 years of experience in intelligence analysis, and is attached to the US Department of Defense (DoD) and the National Security Agency. (NSA) (NSA).
From the military to advertising to security/defense
After his military experience, Tanwa returned to Nigeria and ventured into advertising like his mother. But she soon knew that she was called to something bigger than publicity. She was not satisfied with the lack of discipline and order displayed by many creatives. So after her NYSC service at the agency, she left.
Founding Bulwark Intelligence
He then founded Bulwark Intelligence in Lagos, an information services company that provides security, intelligence and threat assessments to the federal government and private companies.
The company also provides enterprise security risk management services to clients in the public and private sectors. Its services include risk assessments and advice, intelligence reporting, investigative services, cyber security, training, and security consultations.
How your military experience influenced your entrepreneurship
What makes Tanwa’s expertise unique is that he has military service experience, having served 180 days in Afghanistan. He participated in counterinsurgency and counterterrorism operations in Southwest Asia, the Middle East, and Africa.
- Having received drills for 6 weeks, with little time to sleep and constant yelling, the mental and physical transformation of being pushed out of one’s comfort zone came with the confidence to overcome adversity. He later got a job in the intelligence field and enjoyed learning and growing in the community.
- After his full-time service, he briefly accepted a defense contracting job that required him to travel to Afghanistan for six months; that was a unique experience. He worked directly with the US Marine Corps Intelligence Unit, focusing on counter improvised explosive device (CIED) activities. At the time, CIEDs were the leading cause of Coalition Troop deaths in Iraq and Afghanistan.
- Later he got involved as an intel (intelligence) analyst. She constantly heard about various IED attacks and their terrible impact on the troops, as many left and never returned. Every day she woke up, she could take a deep breath and remember being grateful for life and acknowledging those who paid the ultimate sacrifice.
- However, his morale was raised in the army, as the army had a good welfare system. Troops deployed to theaters of war were well catered for with hot meals and hot showers and also paid extra for being in a war zone. That’s why it’s often sad to hear that troops in war zones in Nigeria aren’t getting paid or getting proper equipment.
Professional associations
Currently, Tanwa Ashiru is an exclusive member of the Golden Key International Honor Society, by invitation only; an elite honor society that honors academic excellence and a commitment to lead and serve. He also established a Nigerian-American Veterans Association (NAVA) as a platform for former military personnel to connect.
Your opinion on the security situation in Nigeria
On the security situation in Nigeria, Tanwa He says“We are always looking for that silver bullet. The button that we can use to restore security in Nigeria is education.
- “I just think that if the government can prioritize education as much as it is prioritizing and funding defense…we would see more young people get involved in productive activities and at the same time we can start building the aircraft by building the solutions, building the technical applications. and so on.
- “There also needs to be a recruitment drive that needs to take place and a lot of this needs to be restructured as well so that we can localize surveillance as much as possible because police can address issues within their communities.”.
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