From The Straits Times    |

The Her World 55th Anniversary Gala Dinner and Her World Woman Of The Year 2015 Awards Night, on Friday, August 21, 2015, was graced by a lot of extremely inspiring women, not least our award winners Madam Zuraidah Abdullah, Senior Assistant Commissioner of Police, our Woman of the Year 2015, and Ms Priscilla Shunmugam, our Young Woman Achiever 2015.

But it was the speech given by our Guest of Honour, Madam Halimah Yacob, Speaker of Parliament, that really raised our spirits; so much so that we have decided to reproduce it here in its entirety.

Be inspired!

SPEECH Madam Halimah Yacob Speaker of Parliament WOTY 2015 DECOR 1Guest of Honour, Madam Halimah Yacob, Speaker of Parliament, at the Her World 55th Anniversary Gala Dinner and Her World Woman Of The Year 2015 Awards Night, on Friday, August 21, 2015.
Image: Her World

“Mr Alan Chan, Chairman, SPH Magazines and CEO, Singapore Press Holdings, Mr Loh Yew Seng, CEO, SPH Magazines, Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen …

“Thank you for inviting me to the Her World 55th anniversary gala dinner, and the Her World Woman of the Year and Her World Young Woman Achiever 2015 awards presentation ceremony this evening. It is both my honour and pleasure to be here to celebrate Her World’s birthday and present two significant awards in recognition of women who have made outstanding contributions to our society, community and nation.

“The Her World Woman of the Year award is something close to my heart, as I was one of its recipients. Since its inception 24 years ago, which is almost a quarter of a century, the Her World Woman of the Year award has been honouring women by recognizing their contribution in the different fields.

“We believe women can and do make valuable contributions, like our male counterparts, to our society. We, too, shape and mould the future of our country and even the world, and there are now many successful women in all sectors of the economy.

“Allow me to use some past winners as examples.

“The 1991 Her World Woman of the Year Professor Chan Heng Chee is one of Singapore’s most celebrated diplomats and academics. She was the first woman to head the political science department at the National University of Singapore. In 1988, she became the first director of the government think-tank—the Institute of Policy Studies. Between 1996 and 2012, Prof Chan represented Singapore in Washington and was East Asia’s first female ambassador to the United States.

“The Her World Woman of the Year 1999 winner, Ms Jennie Chua, also Chairperson of the judging committee, is another inspiring woman. The former teacher worked her way up the corporate ladder to become one of Singapore’s most illustrious hoteliers. In 1999, she was promoted to president and chief operating officer of Raffles International Ltd, the hotel management subsidiary of Raffles Holdings. Ms Chua was also the first woman to be elected to the board of the Singapore International Chamber of Commerce in its 161-year history.

“Rachel Eng, Woman of the Year 2014, became the first woman in Singapore to be named the managing partner of a Big Four law firm at the relatively young age of 42. She was also the first woman to be honoured as Managing Partner of the Year at the prestigious Asian Legal Business South East Asia Law Awards in 2011. When she took the award again in 2013, she became the first person to win it twice. Rachel did this while taking care of her three kids, without domestic help.

“These women have devoted themselves to many admirable and inspirational roles that have gone beyond the traditional confines.

“And we know for sure that this trend will continue. Women of today are taking charge of their destiny and at the same, shaping those around them.

“I am confident that our award winners tonight will be a good inspiration to our women, and will continue to lead us to a better future.

“Please enjoy the rest of the evening. Thank you.”

Speech by Guest of Honour, Madam Halimah Yacob, Speaker of Parliament, at Her World 55th Anniversary Gala Dinner and Her World Woman Of The Year 2015 Awards Night, on Friday, 21 August 2015, 7pm, at Shangri -La Hotel, Island Ballroom.

SPEECH Madam Halimah Yacob Speaker of Parliament WOTY 2015 DECOR 2Guest of Honour, Madam Halimah Yacob, Speaker of Parliament, at the Her World 55th Anniversary Gala Dinner and Her World Woman Of The Year 2015 Awards Night, with Madam Zuraidah Abdullah, Senior Assistant Commissioner of Police, Her World Woman of the Year 2015. Image: Her World

Read more about our winners, Madam Zuraidah Abdullah, Senior Assistant Commissioner of Police, our Woman of the Year 2015, and Ms Priscilla Shunmugam, our Young Woman Achiever 2015. And we know you love a bit of fashion too, so check out our Best Dressed guests at the Her World 55th Anniversary Gala Dinner.

Coach ID Lanyard
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