Creating herstory

Bahrain is set to witness the second edition of the prestigious Woman of the Year Awards (WOTYA), a platform honouring community trailblazers, nominations for which are open, writes Melissa Nazareth.

The glittering event will be staged by Woman This Month magazine in December, coinciding with Bahraini Women’s Day, which is celebrated annually on December 1.

Porsche will be the title sponsor of WOTYA 2025, which recognises the achievements and contributions of women in Bahrain across sectors, including business, art, science, healthcare, and social good.

This year’s awards will feature 17 honours across six main categories. A new category, ‘Women in Orange Economy’, has been introduced and features the Orange Economy Rising Star by UNIDO award.

Other categories are Woman in Business, Woman in Service, Woman in Sports, Woman in Social Service and Woman of Arabia Achievement Award.

The orange economy, also known as the creative economy, encompasses art, culture, media, design, technology and heritage industries.

GulfWeekly’s sister paper, the GDN, previously reported on the launch of the Orange Economy year in the kingdom, which will entail a series of competitions, conferences, exhibitions and community engagement activities, staged by the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation Investment and Technology Promotion Office (UNIDO-ITPO) in the kingdom, in collaboration with the RAK Art Foundation.

WOTYA 2025 was officially launched in March at the Wyndham Grand Manama during which Woman This Month chairman George Middleton reaffirmed the platform’s mission to elevate women’s voices.

“When we let her shine bright, Bahrain shines even brighter,” he said in his address.

The 2025 jury panel was also introduced at the event. It includes award-winning entrepreneur Huda Janahi, marketing professional and mental health advocate Nivedita Dhadphale, Standard Chartered Bank head of corporate affairs, brand and marketing Noora Al Nusuf, Maya La Chocolaterie, Maya Delices and SJ Investments founder and chief executive Sonya Janahi, ESMOD Dubai founder and chief executive Tamara Hostal, and journalist, writer and technology pioneer Ubaydli.

In order to be eligible for a nomination, you must be a current resident of Bahrain, except for the philanthropy sub-category. Those who wish to nominate someone for the awards can visit womanthismonth.com for more details.

Last year’s awards attracted more than 400 nominations, 51 per cent of which were Bahraini. The gala event, which was attended by around 500 people, honoured 19 women from among 50 finalists.

Pioneering artist and philanthropist Safeya Kanoo, who passed away on June 18, was acknowledged with a lifetime achievement award.

Reminiscing a memorable interaction with the personality, Red House Marketing managing director Anne Middleton said: “When Safeya Kanoo comes to my mind, it’s not the ‘talented artist’ or the ‘Bahraini socialite’ most people would remember her by, but the gracious, dignified and charitable lady that she was.

“I recall being asked by a friend, who was organising a little fundraising get-together for a home for elderly women, if ‘Madam Safeya’ would give her time to attend. At short notice, I called her and despite her busy schedule and physical issues, she agreed not to mention also giving a generous donation.”

Red House Marketing publishes Woman This Month and Bahrain This Month.

For more information, visit womanoftheyearawards.com.