SA’s economy cannot thrive without equal participation of women – Ramaphosa

African women with jobs are employed in low-skilled, low-paying and insecure jobs and poverty is higher among women.

This is according to President Cyril Ramaphosa who addressed the 2nd women economic assembly on Thursday.

He said the aim of starting the first one which took place last year was to improve the lives of South African women and transform South Africa.

“This 2nd Women Economic Assembly is about turning our words into action, translating commitments into reality, and turning promises into concrete projects, opportunities and jobs for the women of South Africa,” said Ramaphosa.

He said it was critical for the gathering to produce outcomes that uplift, empower and expand women’s access to all levers of the economy.

 “In the second quarter of 2022, 47% of South African women aged between 15 and 64 years were recorded as economically inactive. This means that almost half of the working age women in South Africa are out of labour force compared to 36 per cent of their male counterparts.”

 Ramaphosa also said that the economic assembly encourages a range of sectors to commit to procuring more from women-owned businesses.

“We expect that more announcements will be made in this regard before this assembly closes. We have heard presentations on the various value chain opportunities for women-owned businesses in several industries.”

He also highlighted that the country unfortunately still has far fewer women entrepreneurs than many other countries.

 “As government, we have trained nearly 6,000 women-owned businesses in essential business skills to qualify in the tender process. Our target is to train 10,000 women-owned businesses,” he said.

According to the President, the economic assembly is the most important opportunity for growth and sustainability in industry for women and young people on the continent.

 “Every effort must be made to ensure that this opportunity is explored and taken advantage of. Our economy cannot thrive without the full and equal participation of women.”

 “Let us use this momentum not just to set the tone but to substantially and decisively advance women’s economic empowerment.”

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