Rawya Mansour, African Female Leader of the year 2019
Mansour, founder of RAMSCO Company, was honoured as the most influential figure in Africa for the year 2019 after winning the vote presented by African Leadership magazine on the most influential figures in the African continent for 2019, in a ceremony on 28 February in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Rawya Mansour receives her award as African Female Leader of the year 2019 in South Africa
Mansour is a member of the National Council for Women for Foreign Relations and the Rural Committee, and represented Egypt in Romania in the Francophone countries for the empowerment of women. She is also a member in the Arab Businesswomen Council, the Clinton Global Initiative, the Earth Institute at Columbia University, and the Information and Decision Support Centre in the Council of Ministers for the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
Mansour has established several companies, including OASIS in 2012, RAMSCO Company for Trading and Distribution in 2011, RAMSCO Foundation for Sustainable Agricultural Development in 2009, and RAMSCO for Refined Architecture and Interior Design in 1999.
Through the Integrated Services Upgrading and Waste Recycling Company, she contributed to the removal of general waste and the development of waste systems for three neighbourhoods in Cairo: Dewaiqa, Zeinhom and Pyramid Hills.
She has several patents for recycling agricultural waste and works to implement the concept of sustainable agriculture and the circular economy that serves the sustainable development goals of 2030.
The International Federation of Women in Business granted her first prize in entrepreneurship in 2017.
Mansour was nominated by Africans, particularly Egyptians, via a call for nomination distributed by media partners of African Leadership from across the continent. The nomination is consistent with African Leadership’s overriding objective of promoting innovation, entrepreneurship and development in Africa.
In the submissions for Mansour’s nomination, the parties highlighted the impact of her company, RAMSCO, towards reducing unemployment and creating opportunities for millions of Africans.
In their words, “RAMSCO is contributing towards solving Africa’s biggest problem, which is unemployment.”
The board also observed Mansour’s commitment to promoting local content and showing the world that good things can come from the continent. While the direct jobs have been clearly stated, the indirect jobs that have been created by RAMSCO can only be better appreciated in the retelling.
In selecting Mansour as a nominee for this prestigious award, the board also placed a very high premium on her commitment to a private-sector-led development in the continent. Mansour has therefore become an inspiration for women across Africa and other developing nations.
This selection is in celebration of Mansour’s outstanding contributions towards placing Africa on the global map and changing the narrative in 2019.
The African Leadership magazine’s Person of the Year is an annual award reserved for distinguished Africans who are considered to have blazed a trail in the year under review. A shortlist of nominees is selected via a call for nominations, which is then subjected to a voting process to select one winner from each of the seven categories.
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