April 2021 marked the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Rotary Club of Johannesburg (RCJ), the first Rotary Club on the continent of Africa. It celebrated a century of driving impactful socio-economic transformation throughout the continent. For the first time, on May 8,2021, the organisation had a cutting-edge online platform that allowed thought leaders from the continent to share our collective story of building communities and addressing challenges around the world.
Centennial African Peace Builders Award
Sponsored by the African Brand Architects the conference recognised some of the true trailblazers within Rotary International and their partner organisations. Several leading Africans were recognized for their great contributions to peacebuilding given that peace and conflict resolution one of Rotary’s seven focus areas.
Among those awarded was Graça Machel Founder, Graça Machel alongside South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and former Zambian President Kenneth Kaunda. She received the Centennial African Peace Builders Award for her contribution to Peace Building on the African continent.
A certificate was presented to the conference audience of over 1500 delegates from Africa and the world by the President of Rotary International, Mr Holger Knaack.
Graça Machel received the Centennial African Peace Builders Award for her contribution to Peace Building on the African continent.
“In commemorating 100 years in Africa, we celebrate a global network of passionate and dedicated problem-solvers who take action to create lasting change,” said district governor Annemarie Mostert, chairperson of the 2021 African Centennial Celebrations.
The two-day conference saw discussions on strategic community economic development for poverty alleviation, solving Africa’s twin deficit in education, partnerships in controlling epidemics in Africa, and the future of peacekeeping on the continent. A spokesperson from African Development Bank addressed the factors and solutions to Africa’s water and sanitation crisis, as well as an in-depth discussion on innovation for maternal and child health in Africa, led by UN Women representative Anne Githu-Shongwe.
It culminated with a look at future opportunities and challenges and how young people can help to secure a better future for Africa. Other highlights included entertainment by the Soweto String Quartet and the Ndlovu Youth Choir.
Additional Information: Rotary Africa
The Trust supports and mobilises civil society networks on issues of ending child marriage, ending violence against children, ending female genital mutilation and promoting children’s rights, to carry out advocacy and action across Africa. Special focus is placed on Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania and Zambia where child marriage continues to be a problem largely driven by poverty, gender inequality, harmful traditional practices, conflict, low levels of literacy, limited opportunities for girls and weak or non-existent protective and preventive legal frameworks.
Education is a fundamental right for all children, which is also a vehicle for social, economic and political transformation in communities, countries and the African continent at large. Recent studies indicate a lack of progress in some of the critical commitments aimed at improving education quality, access, retention and achievement, particularly for girls. In most African countries, girls may face barriers to learning, especially when they reach post-primary levels of education. By implementing multi-dimensional approaches to education which includes core education, personal development, life skills and economic competencies, the Trust partners with funding partners, governments, civil societies and the private sector to improve education access.
The Nutrition and Reproductive, Maternal, New-born, Child and Adolescent Health and Nutrition, (RMNCAH+N) of the Children’s Rights and Development Programme aims at promoting the Global Strategy for women, children and adolescents’ health within the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) agenda. The strategy emphasises on the importance of effective country leadership as a common factor across countries making progress in improving the health of women, children and adolescents.
Through its Early Childhood Development (ECD) plan, The Trust will seek to put into action the new science and evidence Report that was presented by Lancet Series on Good and early development – the right of every child. This will be achieved by mobilising like-minded partners to contribute in the new science and evidence to reach all young children with ECD. The Trust’s goal is to be a catalyst for doing things differently, in particular, to rid fragmentation and lack of coordination across ECD sectors. In response to evidence showing the importance of political will in turning the tide against the current poor access and quality of ECD. Even before conception, starting with a mother’s health and social economic conditions, the early years of a child’s life form a fundamental foundation that determines whether a child will survive and thrive optimally.