Events, In the Media
GAUTENG WOMEN’S EXCELLENCE AWARDS HONOURS DR HANRI KRIEL
Mar
BENONI, GAUTENG- The 2025 Gauteng Women’s Excellence Awards (GWEA) were held at the Anew Hotel in Benoni on March 8, 2025, to coincide with International Women’s Day.
The annual event doubled as a celebration of exceptional women who made outstanding contributions to different fields in the province.
One of the notable winners was Dr. Hanri Kriel of the National Council of and for Persons with Disabilities (NCPD), who was recognised with an award in the “Women with Disability” category for her pioneering work in accessible media.
Other incredible women with disabilities honoured at the ceremony included Luthando Kekana, who was a first runner-up in the “Women with Disability” category, and Matebogo Victoria from Voice Out Deaf PTY LTD in the “Women in Business” category. as well as second runner-up in the “Women with Disability” category.
Kekana is a communications professional who, amongst other activities, hosts a podcast called “Let’s Get Inclusive,” aiming to engage on topics that address ableism. She is also the Chairperson of the Association of and for Persons with Disabilities (APD) Greater Johannesburg, an affiliate of NCPD.
Victoria is a multi-award-winning entrepreneur who uses her agrobusiness to empower other deaf persons. Her business highlights the successes of deaf farmers so as to create sustainable income and independence. She also assists with school gardern projects and feeding scheme programs while raising awareness of deaf issues, inclusion, and accessibility.
The Excellence Awards aim to inspire future generations of women leaders while acknowledging those who have broken barriers and created positive change within their communities.
Dr. Kriel, who has a PhD in Drama and Film Studies specializing in captioning for audiences with hearing loss in South African television, shared her thoughts on receiving the award:
“Representation matters. As my thesis goes, life is about stories. A narrative has a beginning, middle, and end, but nothing should stop persons with hearing loss—or any person—from writing their own. Being involved with these awards is a chance to shine a light on the need for accessibility and inclusion in media. My path was forged by projects designed to encourage inclusivity, shaping content, and consulting on ways to caption content that is more accessible.”
After attending Sonitus School for the Hard of Hearing and Wonderboom High School, where she earned two distinctions in matric, Dr. Kriel has built an impressive career working with organizations such as Blixem Productions, Footprint Media TV, Black and White Productions, and TVSmiths.
She currently serves as a video editor and media content creator at NCPD, playing a key role in initiatives like Casual Day, South Africa’s largest fundraising platform supporting persons with disabilities.
All the staff at NCPD had this to say in unison, in pride and support of Dr. Kriel’s achievement: “We congratulate Dr. Hanri Kriel on this much-deserved accolade. Her commitment toward producing accessible media and advocating for inclusion strongly aligns with the mission and ideals of NCPD. We are so proud to have her on our team, and we cannot wait to support and grow her success and impact going forward!
We also want to commend Luthando Kekana and Matebogo Victoria for their exceptional achievements, which demonstrate the considerable value that persons with disabilities bring to different sectors. These women collectively represent excellence and inspire us all.”
Commenting on the awards, Dr. Kriel added, “It is an honour to be recognised like this by the province, and I want to salute my fellow nominees in this category as they are championing recognition and access in their own spaces. I believe with all these efforts, no one will be left behind.”
Awards of excellence were handed out across fourteen categories at the 2025 GWEA, with the Premier’s Special Award going to three exceptional women for their lifetime achievements.
The complete list of 2025 GWEA recipients:
- Social Entrepreneurship: Dieketseng Diale-Orange Your World
- Most Innovative Woman of the Year: Mapula Kgosi – Mapula Kgosi Mathibe Manufacturing
- Young Woman Achiever of the Year: Thando Gumede-Advocate Thando Gumede ZA (Pty) Ltd
- Women in Business: Matebogo Victoria – Voice Out Deaf PTY LTD
- Community Heroine: Norma Mbele-Tosunga Baninga
- Women in Leadership: Phinah Kodisang-Soul City Institute NPC – Social Justice
- Women in Energy: The Solar Power Café—Solar and Storage Projects
- Investing in Girls: Smangele Bokaba—Transformed Teenagers Club
- Trailblazer: Siba Njoba-Imvelo Wealth Solutions Pty Ltd.
- Girl Child: Tanya Jakeni
- Game Changer: Fusi Makhasane-South Africa Networking for Woman Transport Gauteng Province Transport Entity
- Women in Arts: Motshabi Tyelele-Tshabi Girl Productions Pty (Ltd)
- Women with Disability: Dr. Hanri Kriel (Winner), Luthando Kekana (Runner-up)
- Premier’s Special Award: Dr. Grace Naledi Mandisa Pandor, Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, and Dr. Nokgunta Elsie Mhlophe.