Moleboheng Moshe-Bereng, Senior Marketing Officer in the University of the Free State School of Financial Planning Law, was honoured at the Southern Region Women in Media Awards (SRWIMA) for her outstanding and inspiring work to encourage excellence in academics. “It was an absolute surprise and honour, because at times you don’t think that people out there take note of you or the work you do,” expressed Moshe-Bereng.

The award ceremony, which was hosted at the President Hotel on 27 August 2022, was well attended by women doing inspiring work in various fields. Moshe-Bereng, who was invited to speak to women about financial planning at the awards ceremony, was surprised by one of two platinum awards for her continuous work to encourage and inspire academic excellence. “I am still overwhelmed, because even on the different platforms I use to speak about education, I do so out of passion and I don’t realise how many people are actually listening,” she stated. What is more, the recipient of the other platinum award is radio legend Mamontha Modise-Motaung, who Moshe-Bereng considers the voice of her entire childhood. “I was shocked, humbled, and honoured to realise that Mamontha Modise-Motaung was the other recipient of the platinum award.”

The Southern Region Women in Media Awards (SRWIMA) was established by the Free State Empowerment Institute for Women in 2021 as a means to develop and empower women in the media. “The awards are about acknowledging the achievements of women in the media industry who are not always the face of things – such as scriptwriters, camerawomen, technicians, and marketers,” Moshe-Bereng explained. Furthermore, she maintains that these awards are imperative, because they allow women to see other women doing inspiring things. “One of the speakers runs a school where she teaches and mentors aviation technicians. As a woman, I never thought that there were other women doing things like that; seeing it on a platform like that is incredible,” she stated.

Although the ceremony is grounded on empowerment and development, it is special to Moshe-Bereng due to the fact that it is also based on representation. “It shines a light on what is possible for a female child, but most importantly, a black female child,” she expressed. Therefore, the existence of initiatives such as these is important. She says, “I think we live in a world where, even though the opportunities are said to be there on paper – to achieve things, we compete with each other so much – to a point where we are not always giving each other a pat on the back.”