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commission for gender equalitylatest news & developments
Expressing anger on social media is merely performative outrage and does not result in action to prevent such abuse
ACADEMICS

Universities need to better address gender inequality, report says

The report by the Commission for Gender Equality found that universities were reluctant to review their sexual harassment policies This content is restricted to registered users…

  • Umamah Bakharia
1 min read
BUSINESS

South Africa’s gender pay gap leaves women behind

Just 3% of chief executives of JSE-listed companies are female

  • Lyse Comins
4 min read
BLOEMFONTEIN, SOUTH AFRICA MARCH 11: (SOUTH AFRICA OUT) A newborn baby at the Kangaroo Mother Care Centre at Pelonomi Hospital on March 11, 2014 in Bloemfontein, South Africa. The Kangaroo Mother Care Centre helps women who deliver premature babies across the Free State province to take care of their babies until they are fully developed. Kangaroo care is a technique practiced on premature babies, wherein the infant is held, skin-to-skin, with an adult. The concept was initially developed to care for premature babies in areas where incubators are either unavailable or unreliable. (Photo by Conrad Bornman/Gallo Images/Getty Images)
CHILDBIRTH

Gender commission report highlights ‘critical deficiencies’ in Eastern Cape maternity, neonatal facilities

Failures in infrastructure, maintenance and governance are contributing to maternal and neonatal deaths in the province

  • Aarti Bhana
9 min read
Women have fewer rights to access land for homesteads and businesses in rural South Africa than men. (Delwyn Verasamy/M&G)
COMMISSION FOR GENDER EQUALITY

Women have fewer rights over land ownership than men in rural South Africa, study finds

The report by the Commission for Gender Equality says while the country’s Constitution and laws aim to fight discrimination based on sex and race, cultural norms make this…

  • Aarti Bhana
6 min read
Moderator Cathy Mohlahlana with panellists Desiree Jason, Phumelele Mngomezulu, Muzi Ndlovu, Lieketseng Mohlakoana-Motopi and Phinah Kodisang.
CHILD MOTHERS

Breaking the cycle: Ending childhood pregnancy in South Africa

Early and unintended pregnancies remain a critical challenge in South Africa, significantly impacting the health, education and socioeconomic prospects of girls

  • UNFPA
12 min read
Sex work is still illegal in democratic South Africa
COMMISSION FOR GENDER EQUALITY

Citizens have until 31 January to comment on bill decriminalising sex work

The proposed new law is aimed at affording sex workers better working conditions, access to health care and remove the discrimination and stigma against them

  • Mandisa Ndlovu
3 min read
(John McCann/M&G)
COMMISSION FOR GENDER EQUALITY

SA must close gender pay gap

While our situation is complicated by multiple historical inequalities, it is imperative that women participate meaningfully in all economic sectors

  • Aluwani Chokoe
3 min read
Policing receives the most complaints regarding corruption
COMMISSION FOR GENDER EQUALITY

South African police are failing victims of gender-based violence, report shows

There are few convictions, many cases are withdrawn and there is a lack of resources, training and staff

  • Eunice Masson
3 min read
(Photo: Delwyn Verasamy/M&G)
AGNES SITHOLE

Constitutional triumph on matrimonial property rights

Access to land ownership and property rights is inextricably linked to self-determination.

  • Nokuthula Mbele
8 min read
The lived reality for women in South Africa is they get turned away at our police stations. They are told that domestic violence is a family matter. They are sent from one office to another. If they do actually get someone willing to open their case, the case files disappear into delay
COMMISSION FOR GENDER EQUALITY

No progress on GBV council after more than R120mn donated, parliament told

The gender commission is unsure whether a governing body exists for the multi-billion National Strategic Plan on Gender-based Violence and Femicide

  • Eunice Masson
4 min read
COMMISSION FOR GENDER EQUALITY

Women living with HIV continue fight against forced sterilisation

Feminist activist groups still demand justice for human-right violations against women living with HIV

  • Eunice Masson
3 min read
The lived reality for women in South Africa is they get turned away at our police stations. They are told that domestic violence is a family matter. They are sent from one office to another. If they do actually get someone willing to open their case, the case files disappear into delay
COMMISSION FOR GENDER EQUALITY

No council yet for gender-based violence — independent report details why

The interim steering committee tasked with setting up a gender-based violence and femicide structure has not been convened for almost two years

  • Eunice Masson
2 min read
The first day of the inquiry into the appointment of Professor Peter Mbati as the vice-chancellor of the Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University (SMU) and other related matters, had a rocky start in parliament on Tuesday. (Photo: UniVen)
COMMISSION FOR GENDER EQUALITY

Fifteen witnesses for vice-chancellor probe

Sefako Makgatho University vice-chancellor Professor Peter Mbati had interdicted parliament last month from continuing with the inquiry

  • Bongekile Macupe
3 min read
Sexual violence in schools is a pervasive issue, affecting both learners and teachers.
ABUSE

Vet all school employees now to stop sexual abuse

How many times should we be outraged before real action is taken to prevent, and not just address, the scourge of sexual abuse in schools?

  • Andre Gaum
  • Eden Esterhuizen
6 min read
The first day of the inquiry into the appointment of Professor Peter Mbati as the vice-chancellor of the Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University (SMU) and other related matters, had a rocky start in parliament on Tuesday. (Photo: UniVen)
COMMISSION FOR GENDER EQUALITY

Probe into SMU vice-chancellor put on ice

Lawyers have told Parliament’s higher education portfolio committee that it can’t examine sexual misconduct allegations against Vice-Chancellor Peter Mbati

  • Bongekile Macupe
7 min read
(John McCann)
COMMISSION FOR GENDER EQUALITY

Few women leaders in academia

Patriarchal culture still dominates university leadership in SA, despite an abundance of qualified women

  • Bongekile Macupe
7 min read
According to the Commission for Gender Equality’s latest report, this practice is a direct attack on HIV-positive women.
COMMISSION FOR GENDER EQUALITY

Forced sterilisation is ‘inhuman’

According to the Commission for Gender Equality’s latest report, this practice is a direct attack on HIV-positive women

  • Shaazia Ebrahim
4 min read
A recent study of more than 200 rural respondents in the Eastern Cape, where drought has severely affected quality of life and food security, found that although farmers are actively trying to build resilience against climate change, more coordination was needed between state entities and local government to support them. (Photo: Gallo Images/Netwerk 24/Tebogo Letsie
AGNES SITHOLE

Court victory for 400 000 elderly black women

An apartheid law that dispossessed black women of the assets accrued during their marriages has finally been scrapped after a Pinetown pensioner, facing impoverishment, went to…

  • Tania Broughton
6 min read
Mail & Gaurdian
ANC

Cabinet picks boost gender equality

South Africa is now just one of 11 countries in the world where women running the country make up the same proportion as they do in society

  • Editorial
3 min read
As a country that advocates for human rights, it is concerning that most citizens, especially the poor, live on the margins of society. (Delwyn Verasamy/M&G)
COMMISSION FOR GENDER EQUALITY

All our rights should be for all our people

Combating corruption, implementing court orders and holding the state accountable are critical for ensuring human rights for all

  • Paul Kariuki
5 min read