The month of November 2006 ended with a big bang with the 8th Annual African ICT Achievers Awards Banquet, which took place with fanfare at the Sandton Convention Centre on Saturday 25 November.

Ten months of hard work culminated in an Awards Banquet that will be remembered for years to come, not only by the winners, but all who attended this glamorous event.

The road to the final awards ceremony has been full of excitement and difficult decision making. The adjudication and judging process was a tough one and the judges had their hands full deciding on the finalist and ultimately the winners. The criteria for judging were also stiff, with each nominee having to adhere to a tailored set of criteria in the respective category he or she was nominated for. KPMG, however made sure that this process was free and fair, and up to scratch.

The 15 winners, organisation and individual, were chosen and rewarded for the contributions they made in assisting to increase the use of ICTs across Africa, from the rich to the poor. We believe their respective efforts will continue deep into the future and help in making this the African Century.

The African ICT Achievers Award Programme has, as one of its three elements, a Corporate Social Investment (CSI) component. This component aims to facilitate the use of Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) across all regions in Africa and all walks of life.

As part of this CSI section of the Awards, various partners sponsored prizes to the winners in the categories: Top Youth Innovator in Africa, Top Educator in Africa, Top Civil Society in Africa, Top ICT Journalist in Africa and Top Public Sector CIO in Africa.

The Awards Programme also includes an Executive Business Forum, which will be held in the first quarter of 2007. This element of the programme further supports the proliferation of ICTs across the continent and brings top ICT decision makers from the private and public sector together to share knowledge and experiences.

All of us at ForgeAhead would like to thank you for your generous support this past year and hope to continue our relationship on a high note in 2007.