Minister of Human Settlements Mmamoloko Kubayi,
Deputy Minister Alvin Botes,
Deputy Minister Candith Mashego-Dlamini,
Director General of DIRCO Zane Dangor,
DIRCO Senior Officials,
Members of the Mannya, Makhanya and Maxeke family,
Charlotte Mannya Maxeke Institute,
Members of the Diplomatic Corps,
Distinguished guests,
Ladies and gentlemen,

Thank you for gracing us with your presence at this auspicious occasion at which we would like to recognise and honour exceptional African Women leaders whose achievements, mentorship, influence, and contributions have advanced Africa’s development in various sectors of society. Tonight’s awards will also recognise exceptional contributions to the advancement of gender equality and women’s empowerment.

Many of the heroes of our liberation movement are gallant women whose stories are often not told or acknowledged for their contribution. Gertrude Shope, Helen Joseph, Albertina Sisulu, Lilian Ngoyi, and Ruth Mompati are just some of the women upon whose shoulders we stand.

Mme Charlotte Mannya Maxeke, whose legacy we honour each year at this awards dinner, was born 152 years ago, and is often considered the mother of black freedom and a pioneer of women’s education and emancipation. Maxeke was an iconic leader – a woman of great courage and fortitude, and a true daughter of the soil. By memorialising her life, our goal is to inspire generations of women who will embody her values in a meaningful way.

Before I elaborate on the inspiring life and achievements of Mme Maxeke, I would like to draw your attention to some of the other great African women leaders who lived around the same time her, who are often only mentioned in passing in history textbooks, European documents or through oral histories and artworks. The turbulent years following West and Central Africa’s initial contact with Europe were marked by the emergence of women revered for their formidable political skills and social vision. We know of these women—women such as Ana Nzinga, queen of Ndongo; Dona Beatriz, Kongo prophet; and Idia, queen mother of Benin.

Perhaps more well-known was the warrior queen Yaa Asantewaa – queen of the prosperous Ashanti Empire, in now modern-day Ghana. As queen, she was the official protector of the empire’s most sacred object, the Golden Stool. Made of solid gold and believed to house the soul of the nation, the stool represented the royal and divine throne of the empire. When British troops invaded in 1886, and demanded possession of the sacred object, Asantewaa refused. Instead, she led an army against them. “I shall call upon my fellow women. We will fight the white men. We will fight until the last of us falls in the battlefields,” Yaa Asantewaa had said.

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