Awards applaud innovative men
FAIRLAND – Innovative South African men awarded for the difference they make in their communities.
The South African Men of the Year Awards were held at the Mosaiëk Theatre in Fairland where innovative men were celebrated.
It was an evening filled with glitz and glamour as nominees came from far and wide to attend the event. Creator of the first-ever African smartphone called the T-Touch, Thulani Khoza took home the award in the science and technology category.
He demonstrated why the T-Touch cellphone was a contender in the market, showing off some its smart features. “I am very happy to have won the award and this will help to catapult the T-Touch into the international market and attract investors,” he said.
His competition, Randburg resident Nickson Sibanda had his hopes dashed when his mobile television App was pipped by Khoza’s.
Gauteng MEC for Social Development, Nandi Mayathula-Khoza said that the awards were a product of a rigorous process that was open to all men from the age of 18. She pointed out that the winners of the awards were nominated and voted for by the people who knew that they were making a difference in their various communities.
GALLERY: South African Men of the Year Awards
“It is for this reason that I think that through this programme, the Gauteng government is making a notable contribution towards promoting positive male role models, profiling positive nation building and transforming our patriarchal society to be more inclusive and, more significantly, we are producing men who lead this imperative nation building initiative,” Mayathula-Khoza said.
She explained that the aim of the awards was to engage with all South Africans to identify agents of change and to participate in the project by means of nominating and voting for male figures in their community who have produced tangible results and have implemented strategies of positive impact.
The award winners were:
- Gustav Wilson – Man of the Year 2016
- Emmanuel Bonoko – Entrepreneurship
- Dr Dries Millard – Health
- Thulani Khoza – Science and Technology
- Lucky Mbokodo – Education
- Aubrey Kekana – Sports
- Donald Selamolela – Youth
- Matsebe Lekalakala – Arts and Culture
- Bishop Sipho Mkhawane – Community Developer
- Buyani Zwane – Leadership.
