BWA announces finalists

Corporate category

1. Philisiwe Buthelezi - CEO of the National Empowerment Fund
   
2. Colleen Louw - station manager at Primedia Broadcasting
   
3. Matifadza Nyazema - executive director of the Sandton Convention Centre
   
4. Zyda Rylands - managing director of Woolworths
   

Entrepreneur category:

1. Xoliswa Kakana - chairperson of ICT-Works
   
2. Nondumiso Mzizana - CEO of Sikelela Medical, Dental and Pharmaceuticals
   
3. Sotse Segoneco - CEO and founding member of Sonke Pharmaceuticals
   

According to BWA president, Kunyalala Maphisa, "Nominations received for this year's awards were encouraging, bearing in mind that last year no award was granted in the Entrepreneurial Category, as nominations did not satisfy all of the award criteria. The strength of this year's entries shows that women are playing an increasingly meaningful leadership role in all sectors of the economy, a trend that will undoubtedly benefit the country as a whole.

"This year's awards have attracted Telkom, as one of the main sponsors for this event. This shows that they buy in to our vision of honouring the advancement of women," she concluded.

Judges

This year's corporate judges were Dr Namane Magau, Santie Botha, 2010 Businesswoman of the Year and Shirley Machaba, partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers. The entrepreneur judges were Tim Tebeila, founder and executive chairman: Sekoko Resources and Tebeila Insurance Brokers, Ipeleng Mkhari, co-founder and CEO: Motseng Investment Holdings, Dr Danisa Baloyi, businesswoman and Basetsana Kumalo, CEO: Women Investment Holdings.