Michelle Marais walked away victorious after she was announced as the winner of the Women’s Insight Deliberation Competition held at Hollard’s head offices in Parktown on March 1.
Marais said winning the competition was a pleasant surprise. “I came and wanted to be involved in this competition to build networks and get to know other women in the industry and the sponsors. I came into this industry wanting to take it forward and being the winner is an opportunity for me to contribute to those platforms to be built and to take the agriculture industry forward.”
The Women’s Insight Deliberation Competition aimed to encourage well-thought out and accurate deliberation of the topic with practical examples to create a platform where women in agriculture can become part of the agricultural discussion platform and ultimately influence public and industry discussions.
The competition provides the ideal opportunity for women who live on farms or who were involved in an agricultural business or in the sector to become part of the discussion on how boardroom decisions on policy matters impacted their daily lives.
The finalists included:
- Lindi Botha: agriculture communication specialist
- Yolandi Kruger: founder and director of Dunamis Agri Advisory Solutions
- Michelle Marais: project coordinator at Urban Farmer
- Prudence Thulisile Mokwena: farmer and founder of RBKM Chickens
• Karen Truter: agriculturist
Event organiser, Marianna du Plessis said women in agriculture aged 18 years and older were invited via various platforms to participate in this initiative.
“Each participant could air her views and participate in a debate to share her solutions for change. Our sincere appreciation goes to the participating partners for supporting this initiative and contributing to the success of the first-ever competition of this nature.”
Convener of the adjudication panel and applied economics and member services lead, Corné Louw highlighted that only five finalists could be chosen.
The entries emphasised the meaningful role women played in the agricultural sector. Each of the women who submitted an entry was a testament to the value women could bring to the table.
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