Local women taught to acknowledge power in their hands

Educational Psychologists from UJ hosted a women’s forum to celebrate and empower women from marginalised communities. The event took place on Saturday, September 16 at Funda Ujabule Primary School in Pimville.

The purpose of this event was to provide women from different communities and professions a platform to discuss issues around being a woman in the 21st century as well highlighting women’s health and wellness issues.

According to Dr Fumane Khanare, senior lecture at UJ Soweto Campus, being a woman today is an advantageous opportunity.

ALSO READ: Plastic recycling in the spotlight this World Environmental Day

Women today have emerged into representatives in spaces where they were silenced; they have the ability to be mirrors for a black girl child in townships.

In this era being a woman for me is an opportunity and an asset. We are women who can evolve, women who are cognisant of their space in terms of teaching, learning and development,” said Khanare.

“Today women have the ability to write their own stories and if we are not aware of the time in which we exist in, we will keep on rewriting the negative stories that speak only of our past.”

The era has come whereby South Africans become cognisant of the freedom that they have acquired and begin to move forward with this change. The fight is not yet over but the progress is evident and that alone should lead the way.

When it comes to health and wellness, women always strive to discover better ways to improve their health conditions. Most women are not afraid to go on regular check-ups because they value their health more than anything.

Dr Lucia Munongi, Educational Psychologist at UJ Soweto Campus mentioned that, |Women are fearless beings when it comes to addressing their health issues. They do not wait until it’s too late, and they are survivors because they are cautious of their health.”

ALSO READ: Celebrating community developers on Women’s Month

In 2021, life expectancy at birth for women in South Africa was about 65 years, while life expectancy at birth for men was about 59.46 years on average.

“This event has helped us in term of upgrading ourselves as women in this modern society. Being aware of who we are and what we actually want as mothers because our lives do not end after our children have grown up. We need to develop ourselves,” said Ntombizodwa Molefe, one the women who attended the event.

This modern society has given birth to a liberated woman who needs to move forward with a liberated mind-set to produce impeccable change in this evolving society.