MAS pays tribute to courage and excellence of its female changemakers

MAS Holdings paid tribute to the exceptional contributions of its female employees across multiple countries, recognising their inspirational performances in achieving excellence within the organisation and in their communities, at the company’s 14th edition of the MAS Abhimani – Empowered Woman of the Year Awards.

The awards, held under the theme ‘pride of our nation’ at the BMICH recently, honoured 77 female associates from all work levels of the company, selected from among more than 500 applicants, across 40 locations and five countries. The awards recognised and celebrated strength in diverse aspects among these female changemakers, including contributions relating to entrepreneurship, innovation, community service and sustainability, professional competencies and leadership.

Under Empowered Woman of the Year, 44 awards were presented at the event while six special awards were also given, relating to exemplary performance in entrepreneurship, innovation and sustainability. Thirteen award winners were recognised under the Frontier Challenge while 14 recipients were honoured with Leadership Awards. 

Sri Lanka Women’s Cricket Team Captain Chamari Athapaththu was the chief guest at the ceremony held this year, which recognised winners for 2020 and 2021.

The MAS Abhimani Awards presented since 2004 is part of the company’s concerted initiatives to achieve and promote gender equality and empower all women and girls, within and outside the organisation. The awards recognise the importance of celebrating, profiling and sharing the success stories of female changemakers, who serve as inspirational role models for all women and men, by breaking stereotypes and achieving the supposedly impossible. The awards are part of MAS’ Women Go Beyond programme launched in 2003, which aligns with the UN Women’s Empowerment Principles and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). 

More than 70 percent of MAS’ 115,000 associates at present across 15 countries are female.
“We take pride in the remarkable achievements of these women who drive forward the apparel industry and in turn our economies; women who are contributing towards positive change for all women in their communities by challenging outdated ideas and norms,” said MAS Head of Women Go Beyond and General Manager of Women’s Empowerment and Advocacy Thanuja Jayawardene.  “MAS remains fully committed to the long journey towards achieving gender equality.”