AfriSam CIO Louise van der Bank and Wits University CIO Dr Stanley Mpofu.

The winners of the “Decade of CIO Service” awards were announced last Thursday, during the annual ITWeb Brainstorm CIO Banquet.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the CIO Banquet. Celebrating a decade of excellence, ITWeb Brainstorm and MTN Business introduced two new awards to honour the vital contributions of IT leaders in South Africa's private and public sectors.

Louise van der Bank, CIO of AfriSam, emerged as the winner in the enterprise category, while Dr Stanley Mpofu, CIO of the University of the Witwatersrand, made his mark in the public sector category.

The duo received recognition for their outstanding contributions to the industry, leveraging IT for the benefit of their organisations.

The event brought together the who's who of the industry, at the Inanda Sports Club, in Johannesburg.

In her acceptance speech, Van der Bank dedicated her award to her team, and also thanked her fellow finalists for their contribution to the industry.

“After dedicating years of service to various organisations, including public sector entities, I am deeply humbled to receive this prestigious award,” she said.

Dr Mpofu commented: “I spent my childhood herding goats and cattle. When I started learning COBOL, I was the oldest in class, but today I'm honoured to be among esteemed individuals like you.”

The judging panel – comprising members of ITWeb’s editorial staff, including ITWeb Brainstorm editor Matthew Burbidge − shortlisted nominees after closing nominations earlier in October.

“There were many excellent candidates in the nominations process, and it’s been a very tough decision to get to these shortlists,” Burbidge notes. “The calibre of nominees speaks highly of the depth and quality of CIOs we have in this country, and while some may be disappointed, the final selection is a testament to their excellence.”

Van der Bank was nominated alongside the following enterprise CIO finalists:

• Muhammad Ali Bhikhan, CIO, Absa Regional Operations
• Viren Naidu, CIO, Hollard Insure
• Sam Nkosi, group CIO, Santam
• Kevin Wilson, GM: IT services, Stefanutti Stocks

In the public sector, Dr Mpofu was shortlisted with the following finalists:

• Rubens Da Silva, CIO, Johannesburg Water
• Dr Denisha Jairam-Owthar, CIO, Council for Medical Schemes
• Libisi Maphanga, CIO, Independent Electoral Commission
• Sello Mmakau, group chief digital officer, Telkom