By Nangamso Mabindla
12 August 2005

IT'S official: the Eastern Cape is leading the way in the empowerment and advancement of women.

This was confirmed when the province beat the country's eight other provinces to win the National Women's Day Awards for Gender Mainstreaming Best Practices in Community Projects. The award was made at the East London City Hall on Friday, August 12.

The initiative aims to encourage the empowerment and advancement of women and their involvement in community building projects. The ceremony, an initiative of the Department of Water Affairs and Forestry (DWAF), was attended by Buyelwa Sonjica, the minister, Deputy Minister of Arts and Culture Ntombazana Botha and Deputy Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism Rejoice Mabudafhasi.

Speaking at the ceremony, David Hlobo, the director of transformation in the DWAF, said the awards were important as they encouraged the involvement of women in community building initiatives.

"We want to find out which of the nine provinces has made inroads in the advancement and empowerment of women in our country," Hlobo said.

Eastern Cape Finance MEC Billy Nell urged the government and its partners to work together in building a better society for future generations.

"Our focus is on making sure that we fight poverty, HIV/Aids and women discrimination in our province. If we are serious about building a better society then women need to be the foundation of that society," Nell said.

Congratulating the Eastern Cape, Sonjica agreed with Nell, saying she was happy that the province was making progress in the empowerment of women.

In 1995 about 14 million people did not have access to safe drinking water and adequate sanitation, she said. Most of these lived in rural areas where women were condemned to spending hours a day walking to fetch water.

"And we are facing a similar problem today where women are still dominated by men, especially in rural areas ... Though the Eastern Cape has made strides in urban areas, we now need to shift our focus to the rural areas."

Sonjica urged the organisers to host next year's awards in any of the country's villages. "This will encourage people to respect their women. I wish we could go to our people in those areas and reach their hearts."