Interests of women remain a national priority
Historical reference records reflect that at the time of our democratic transition in 1994, there was only one female chief director in the whole of the public service.
The apartheid administration had not only designed disadvantage and inequality for black South Africans, but also had a built-in programme of gender discrimination in which few women achieved high office, or were given the opportunity to fly an aircraft, drive a train or bus, or supervise a large-scale infrastructure project – which were ordinarily described as male dominated work. Simply put women suffered triple oppression prior to 1994.
It is worth flashing back to this past of racial and gender inequality, as we commemorate Women's Month 2020, in our annual tribute to the more than 20 000 women who marched to the Union Buildings on 9 August 1956 to protest against the extension of Pass Laws to women.
This month provides us an opportunity to reflect on the monumental achievement of these phenomenal women, who proved the leadership capabilities of the women of South Africa in a society dominated by patriarchy.
Women's
Month also provides us with the opportunity to examine the progress made in advancing the rights of women over the past 24 years, when the introduction of the Bill of Rights first gave women formal recognition as equal citizens.
Twenty-five years ago, shortly after our first democratic elections, South Africa signed the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, which was the most progressive blueprint ever for advancing women's rights.
One of the first legislative acts of the first democratic Parliament, was to ratify the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.
These three historic
events clearly showed that South Africa was committed to the empowerment of the women in our country and globally.
Since then, significant advances have been made to improve the rights and representation of women across social, political and economic spheres.
Women are today well represented in government, making up half of the national composition of Ministers in the Executive.The rights of women are protected and fostered through various policies and programmes that have transformed the education, reproductive healthcare, basic
services and social support landscapes.
Sadly, this progress is constantly under attack through gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF), which continues to worsen in spite of the work done by government, non-governmental organisations and individuals to fight this horrific violation of the human rights of women.
The global coronavirus pandemic also threatens the progress made in the advancement of women's rights for a number of reasons.
Women have been hardest hit by the financial implications of the lockdown, with the latest National Income Dynamics Study Coronavirus Rapid Mobile Survey showing that women were most affected by the three million jobs lost between February 2020 and April 2020.
The study found that two million women lost their jobs during this time. Most of these were already disadvantaged black women.
President Cyril Ramaphosa has said that all countries must ensure that the coronavirus pandemic does not worsen existing inequalities in society or impede the realisation of the rights of women and girls.
Existing initiatives to advance the rights of women must not fall by the wayside during the coronavirus pandemic, because this would leave the women of South Africa even more vulnerable to GBVF. It is an acknowledged fact that disempowerment and economic dependency leave women open to exploitation and abuse.
It is for this reason that a cornerstone of government's gender equality framework is the broadening of the participation of women in our economy.
The draft Public Procurement Bill, which was recently gazetted, aims to establish a single regulatory framework for procurement applicable to national, provincial and local government as well as state-owned entities.The Bill will ensure that the state utilises and leverages procurement to advance economic opportunities for previously disadvantaged people, including women.
A number of other programmes have been formulated to promote the economic empowerment of women, including the SheTradesZA platform, which assists womenowned businesses to participate in global value chains and markets.
Over the next five years, the Industrial Development Corporation has set a target of providing R10 billion of government and partner funding for women-empowered businesses.
Sadly, in the more than two decades since the Beijing Declaration, little progress has been made globally in transforming the lives of women.
President Ramaphosa emphasised the challenges we still face when in the National Women's Day speech, he said:“It cannot be that this Women's Day is drenched in the tears of families who have lost their sisters, daughters and mothers to violence perpetrated by men.”
This Women's Month, we must all work together to ensure that the interests of women become a national priority so that they may live without fear, work without prejudice, make independent personal choices and ultimately become equal citizens not only on paper, but in reality.
As the Public Service, we must provide leadership and role modelling to the broader society in the way we advocate and advance gender transformation within our own ranks, and in the way we place the rights and needs of women first in our design and implementation of services.