Celebrating the efforts of women
Gender equality today for a sustainable tomorrow.
This was the theme for the International Women’s Day Celebration which saw the attendance of minister for the Department of Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities,
Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, alongside Social Development
MEC Nkakareng Rakgoale, who represented Premier Chupu Mathabatha.
The function was held at The Ranch Resort on March 8.
Rakgoale stated that days like International Women’s Day present an opportunity to pause and reflect on the significant strides that have been made by government to ensure that the rights of women in terms of economic empowerment and gender equality are recognised. “The ANC-led government has done a lot for children and people living with disabilities at provincial level. Women representation has increased from 30 % to 43 % after the 2019
election and Limpopo has the largest proportion of women with 53% of seats in legislature occupied by women,” she said. She added that it can’t be fully celebrated, while incidents of gender-based violence and femicide are still being reported in the country.
Nkoana-Mashabane began her speech by honouring and celebrating the collective efforts of women across the globe to ensure that the lived experiences and expertise of women are not erased from the discourse on the evolution of humanity. “On March 8 every year, we applaud the women who continue to break the stereotype on what development looks like across the world. We must collectively assess the achievements and progress made in the advancement, empowerment and emancipation of women across the world,” she said.
The day included a dialogue for the upcoming UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) which will be chaired by South Africa to be held in New York from March 14 to 25.
Nkoana-Mashabane explained that they want to engage in the experiences of women in farming and how they are affected by climate change, changing weather patterns, environmental issues and risks impacting their work, families, communities and livelihoods. “Despite the advancement and increased participation of women in agricultural processes, gender inequalities continue to threaten their full and effective participation in the sector. The gender and wage gaps that were apparent decades ago are still so today. We need to see a reform of the sector to promote inclusion and drive equality,” she said. She added that the department remains committed to advocate for the promotion of gender equality and prevention of harmful forms of masculinities from a life-cycle approach, involving communities and institutions including educational, religious, government, and commercial business organisations.