Following weeks of public nominations from across the
African continent and its diaspora, the final nominees for the much-anticipated
New African Woman Awards 2017 have been announced.
Chosen in 12 categories, 68 groundbreaking women have made the final list which
will now be adjudicated by a special panel of judges, and the winners in each
category will be announced on 12 April at a Gala Dinner in Dakar, Senegal.
The new UN deputy secretary-general, Amina J. Mohammed, Somalia’s first female
presidential candidate Fadumo Dayib, Gambia’s doyen of democratic change,
Fatoumata Jallow-Tambajang,
Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, the South
African Olympic gold medallist Caster Semenya and her fellow
countrywoman, former public protector Thuli Madonsela, are some of the names
that made the final list from the thousands of nominations received.
Organised by the pan-African bi-monthly, New African the Awards – which
celebrate and honour exceptional African women who have made a positive impact
and contributions in their communities, and the continent at large, in the past
12 months will take place on the eve of the New African Woman Forum, which
takes place at Dakar’s Terrou-Bi Hotel on 13 April.
By Chukwudi Esther Chidinma
