As part of activities to commemorate International Women’s day, today, the Plaisance district has recognised ten women who have made a positive impact in their community.

The women are former teacher, Rita Milius, who spent over 40 years in the profession and who is now an active member of the church; Hilda Sopha, a retired telephone operator for the civil aviation; Dainise Quatre, Seychelles first female marine protected area professional certified by the Western Indian Ocean Certification of Marine Protected Area Professionals (WIO-COMPAS); Maryline Desnousse, a retired teacher; Marie-Therese Elizabeth, a retired head teacher; Patricia Gill, who started her career in the health sector as a nursing assistant and is now a midwife; Hilda Cassime, a retired business woman who was the first to open a shop in the Copolia area; Inese Chang-Waye, senior ozone officer and Astride Tamatave, deputy Comptroller General at the Ministry of Finance, National Planning & Trade.

Each woman received a shield as a small token of appreciation and a gift bag sponsored by the Seychelles Civil Aviation Authority (SCAA), presented by First Lady Linda Ramkalawan and the Minister for Local Government & Community Affairs, Rose-Marie Hoareau.

The elected member of the National Assembly for Plaisance, Richard Labrosse, said he came up with the idea to honour women from the district last year when he realised a lot of them had made valuable contributions to the country and their community.

“We cannot let these women go unnoticed. We want them to know that we appreciate their valuable contributions which is why we have organised this ceremony today,” he said.

For her part, Plaisance DA, Marie-Anne Florentine, said women play a key part in society and their role should not be overlooked.

“It is them who nurture children, and it is them who still wake up to go to work despite some of them being single parents. If we did not have women I do not think that the society would be standing like it is standing today,” she said.

The ten women were chosen by the Plaisance residents themselves, following a plea by the district’s MNA and district administration’s office, through social media, where they were asked to choose the women they thought deserved the award.

One of the recipients, Patricia Gill, a midwife by profession, has been working for the Ministry of Health for 32 years. She said it felt good to be appreciated for her hard work.

“When you know that while you are working and giving your all into something and someone acknowledges that work, it definitely makes you want to work even harder. And so I thank everyone that made the ceremony today possible,” she said.

Yesterday’s event was also attended by the Speaker of the National Assembly, Roger Mancienne and representatives from the SCAA, which was the main sponsor.

Source: Seychelles Nation