Cecilia Makiwane (1880–1919) was the first African registered professional nurse in what would become South Africa and an early activist in the struggle for women's rights.

Cecilia Makiwane was born in 1880 at the MacFarlane Mission in Victoria East, a district about 10 km away from Alice in what was the Cape Colony.

[1] Her father was Reverend Elijah Makiwane, a pioneering clergyman and the second Black minister ordained in the Presbyterian Church, who was trained in South Africa.

The lack of adequate schooling for Black people hindered many from entering the field which required to pass a written examination in English or Afrikaans.

Under colonial rule, the Transvaal and the Orange Free State commenced nurse training for Black women in the 1930s and 1950s, respectively.

A postage stamp was issued in 1982 to honour local heroine Cecilia Makiwane by the short-lived republic "Ciskei", now known as the Eastern Cape.

The Cecilia Makiwane Nurse's Recognition Award for health care professionals, was introduced by the South African government in 2002 in her honour.