The First Lady, Her Excellency Jeannette Kagame was awarded with “African Woman of Excellence Award”, in honor of her commitment and drive for excellence and overall contribution to Africa’s development especially the work she does through the involvements of her organization Imbuto Foundation, which includes educating and empowering women, young girls and the most vulnerable groups in Rwanda. The awarding ceremony took place in Sandtown, Johannesburg in South Africa on Saturday 29^th September 2018. The First tweeted: ‘Receiving the African Women of Excellence Award is an honor and serves as encouragement not only to myself, but to all women to continue fighting for what they believe in, for the benefit of our people.’ The High Commissioner of Rwanda in South Africa HE Vincent Karega who received the award said that Rwanda is reaping from the efforts of promoting women participation in national development programmes. “We have, therefore, committed ourselves to create and continue ensuring a conducive environment for women growth and development through favorable policies and laws.”-said Vincent Karega The High Commissioner added that: “It is safe to say that Rwanda is where it is today mainly due to the fact that we chose to promote the inclusion of women, as we could not leave out over 50 percent of our population and expect sustainable development”. The awards are an initiative aimed at recognizing the contributions of women of African descent across the world. The women selected for awards honors represent diverse backgrounds, personal characteristics, and life experiences. They are also lifelong advocates for promoting equality for women and girls everywhere. Other iconic women who received this years’ ’African Woman of Excellence Award’ include South African female politician Nomzamo Winifred Zanyiwe Madikizela also known as Winnie Madikizeka-Mandela, American artist Aretha Louise Franklin.