By Tabisa Mntengwana
15 February 2010

LEADING women in the information and communications technology (ICT) industry will be awarded for their work on Thursday, 18 March at the Regent Hotel in East London.

The Eastern Cape Women in ICT Awards are hosted by the Black Information Technology Forum in conjunction with Imbizo Events and the State Information Technology Agency (Sita). Speakers at the event will include Eastern Cape Premier Noxolo Kiviet, making the keynote address, and the Sita chairperson, Zodwa Manase.

According to a press release issued by the organisers, the event is aimed at recognising top women in the ICT sector, including senior professionals and emerging businesswomen, as well as at striking a gender balance in the industry.

Award winners will be women from Eastern Cape Province who are directly or indirectly involved in the industry either in projects or sales and marketing.

In her keynote address, Kiviet will highlight the ways in which the industry can improve through mentorship and training.

The event is a curtain raiser for the much-anticipated annual Eastern Cape ICT Summit, which is a platform for people in the sector to engage on a provincial and national stage. The summit will host key role players who will share ideas on how to position ICT solutions to maximise profits and stabilise the economy and shareholder value.

According to the organisers, the awards event aims to counter the prevailing and unsatisfactory statistics of women in ICT.