Now in its fifth year, the Awards invites entries from anyone who has contributed to the wellbeing of their community in South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Lesotho and Swaziland. The awards recognise community projects and organisations in the categories of “Community Innovator”, recognising inspirational community initiatives, “We Care”, recognising those working with the sick, handicapped, elderly or vulnerable children, “Education”, honouring educators with a difference and “Vukuzenzele” which recognises entrepreneurs among women/previously disadvantaged individuals (PDIs), youths and in small enterprises.

The 2007 Awards distributed almost R1 million in prize money, honouring 31 regional winners, and six national winners in the process. The six final winners each received R75,000 as well as R1,000 in Jet shopping vouchers.

Jet Club Manager, Tessa Lloyd says that over the past five years the Awards have proven to be a powerful vehicle for community upliftment. “It is without doubt the premier grassroots award program in southern African, effectively identifying and supporting community projects from the ground up.

“I am delighted with the quality of entries for the 2007 awards and believe it is indicative of the encouraging efforts at a community level to contribute towards real social transformation in South Africa. A verification team visited all short-listed projects to ensure that the winners chosen can demonstrate a sustained impact and a clear agenda of benefiting the community as a whole. The six final winners are all remarkable in their own way but share a common vision – the transformation of their community through working for others. They have little or no external support and seldom any specialist education which makes their efforts all the more noteworthy.”

Chosen from thousands of worthy entries and thirty-one inspirational finalists, the national winners of the 2007 Jet Community Awards are the Association for Sustainable Rural Development from Keimoes in the Northern Cape (Community Innovator), the Lesotho Child Counselling Unit from Maseru, Lesotho (We Care), the Stuart Ntlathi Science, Engineering and Technology Institute from Jouberton in the North West Province (Education), Eyethu Community Development Project in Vosloorus, Gauteng (Vukuzenzele Women), the Haarlem Honeybush Nursery from Haarlem, Eastern Cape (Vukuzenzele Small Enterprise) and Dirang Mmogo Business Enterprise CC from Jouberton, North West (Vukuzenzele Youth).

Overview information on each category winner is included below. For more information visit www.jetstores.co.za/Jet/Jet+Cares/

[22 Oct 2007 06:38]

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