Women leaders honoured for exceptional service

Other award recipients included Mindra Katorogo, the Dean of the Faculty of Commerce at Makerere University Business School (MUBS); Prisca Ampumuza Rwamahe, the Director, Strategy and Innovation Department at Bank of Uganda; Alice Emasu, the Executive Director of the Association for Rehabilitation and Re-Orientation of Women for Development; and Irene Birungi, chief executive of the Presidential CEO Forum.

The event recognised women who have served on boards and contributed to leadership in both the public and private sectors.

The Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (UCAA) Deputy Director General, Olive Lumonya, who was the keynote speaker, urged women to aspire for greater leadership and service beyond board appointments.

Lumonya observed that in the past, it was uncommon for women under the age of 50 to be appointed to boards. However, she said opportunities increasingly favour those who prepare themselves for leadership.

“Opportunity benefits those who are best prepared,” she said.

She reflected on the challenges faced by pioneer women in boardrooms. “In the beginning, the first women did not walk into welcoming boardrooms; they walked into rooms that tolerated them. Women endured the burden of proof, loneliness and stereotyping, but they stayed and created footprints we now ride on,” she said.

Lumonya said although opportunities for women had expanded, gender disparities in board leadership remained. “Today, the path is wider, but we are not yet at the head of the table,” she said.

She said women hold 23% of board seats globally and approximately 20–24% in Uganda, while less than 8% of board chairpersons worldwide are women.

Lumonya, who began her board leadership journey at the Uganda Women's Effort to Save Orphans in her mid-30s, said women should not become comfortable once appointed to boards.

“Once you are on a board, you should not simply occupy the seat and enjoy the comfort. You must remain relevant,” she said.

She urged women to use their positions to influence decisions, support other women and strengthen leadership. “We should protect our presence on boards and move from representation to influence, sponsor other women, and govern with courage and character,” she noted.

According to Lumonya, boardrooms are not merely places where decisions are made, but are also places where futures are shaped and legacies are built.

Lumonya congratulated the award recipients and commended the organisers for recognising women's contributions to leadership.

Sarah Kagingo, deputy chairperson of PSFU, said authentic leadership could not be faked.

She noted that women bring emotional intelligence, intuition and diverse life experiences to sensitive, high-stakes boardroom discussions.

Rather than shy away from traditionally male-dominated spaces, Kagingo urged women to let their expertise and presence speak for themselves.

“Don't betray the woman depending on your contribution at the decision-making table. Be her voice. Lift others as you rise,” she said.

Before this, Lumonya received the Global Female Leadership Impact Award in New York in 2024 in recognition of her contribution to advancing women's leadership internationally.

In 2022, she received the Africa Women Leaders Award at the World Women Leadership Congress in Mauritius. In 2025, she was named among Africa's Top 100 Women in Leadership at the African Women Awards held in Kigali, Rwanda.