A happy, warm women’s month to all of you. Our book is my very favourite publication every year for it is a little book of inspiration and aspiration, of role models and a symbol of a country where the shape and form of leadership has been made more diverse and fair.
This is a direct result of a Constitution and a political context that enshrined gender equality. In every private sector sphere from the high skies of aviation to the depths of our mines, women have proven that, given the opportunity, they are up to any task.
It took Maria Ramos to turn around Transnet. At e.tv, Debora Patta is leading a demanding new 24-hour news channel.
In government, the traditional glass ceilings have been shattered and women run cities and portfolios that go beyond the ones usually reserved for our gender.
And, in civil society, it is women who lead the drumbeat for a better life; women who keep power on its toes and women who do the essential work of reminding us that freedom is still notional for those for whom three regular meals, good health care and decent education are still tragically distant dreams.
It’s a no-brainer to say the path is still long and that many women still feel themselves constrained by networks of patriarchy and other invisible walls to progress. In my industry, the media, I know this to be true because we have undertaken a study to find out how high our glass ceiling still is. It is for those of us in this book to shatter the glass ceilings and make sure that we empower young women as we have been empowered. The next few years are going to be challenging ones for women.
I detect a backtrack from a forthright support for women’s empowerment as we begin to usher in a more conservative public administration.
We must protect the space of equality and empowerment for it is the only way we will tackle the real ills of endemic violence and abuse that make us a world-beater in an area we should not be.
It’s an odd South African quirk that we often look for what isn’t before we look at what is. Every year, readers point me to women who should be in the book. I look forward to those emails but my plea is to celebrate first what the book represents before getting peeved at who is not in it.
In a country of more than 20-million women, our team has, I’m sure, missed out a few people who should be in the book. We have once again this year introduced new sections, including the professions and property, among others. We are guided by industry associations and professional bodies that help us make our choices.
This year, the book is an easier read and that is because of the excellent editing of Barbara Ludman. Desme Schutz, our project manager, has a deep appreciation and respect for the women in the book and she has helped us to grow it. Edwina van der Burg is the managing editor who ran the project, while Helen Yardley’s astute design eye and perfectionist editing has ensured a product of high quality.
To those of you in the book, a warm thank you for gracing our pages and to our readers we hope you enjoy this handbook of excellence and commitment.
Ferial Haffajee
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