BLOGGING THE VIEW: 5 gender gaps South Africa needs to address this Women’s Month

We celebrated Women’s Day on Wednesday and will continue to celebrate women throughout the month of August, but it can’t just be pinkwashing by corporates looking for a cheap marketing ride.

South Africa remains one of the most unequal countries socially, economically, and racially – and the gender divide is no different.

Here are 5 key issues facing women that need to be addressed if the next generation is truly going to experience gender equality in South Africa.

1. LGBTQIA+ issues

According to a report in the Human Rights Watch: “South Africa, notwithstanding strong legal protections, continues to battle violence directed against LGBT people.

In 2021, at least 24 people were reportedly murdered in bias-motivated attacks.”

Despite one of the world’s most progressive constitutions, religious and cultural beliefs – as well as pure misinformation – continue to fuel fear and hatred towards the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, intersex, asexual – and other – communities in South Africa.

Hate killings of black lesbians, in particular, have become horrifically commonplace in a country where the rights of such individuals are enshrined in the Constitution.

2. Higher education

While the number of women attending tertiary institutions has increased, the representation of females in leadership positions – particularly in higher education – is still nowhere near equal to that of men.

The total number of graduates in the Science, Engineering and Technology (SET) sector also remains significantly low, which is concerning in light of South Africa’s scientific and technical skills shortage.

In an address by Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation Dr Blade Nzimande at the UN Women’s Participation in Higher Education in southern Africa webinar, he stated:

“South African women are still hugely under-represented in leadership positions. For example, of the 26 universities, at some point, only five have been led by women vice chancellors.

This can also be attributed to a small pool of women who are ‘ready and qualified’ for promotion due to systemic barriers.”

3. Teenage pregnancy

The gender equality gap in education is exacerbated by the high teen pregnancy rate in South Africa – a problem that falls largely on the shoulders of South African women, even though men have an equal role to play, and often more so as many cases are a result of rape.

In a Parliamentary response in June 2022, Minister of Basic Education Angie Motshekga said that between April 2021 and March 2022, there were almost 90 000 pregnancies of girls aged as young as 10, up to 19 years.

In addition to the trauma associated with rape, pregnancy and unwanted children, these victims are likely to drop out of school which leaves them even more vulnerable in the future.

4. Healthcare

Healthcare inequality is a massive challenge for the majority of South African citizens, but women bear the brunt of this inequality.

The ‘feminisation’ of HIV and Aids has seen women primarily having to care for such patients.

Further to this, our legacy of discrimination means the majority of healthcare resources are in urban areas yet a large percentage of South African women are based in rural areas, with the distance and cost making healthcare inaccessible.

According to the International Federation of Gynaecology and Obstetrics:

“Several women with known pregnancy risk factors were unable to seek care even if they faced serious health risks.

Others encountered life-threatening delays within the healthcare system.

Many women were also unable to judge the severity of their disease pathology and sought care only once their condition became life-threatening.”

5. Gender-based violence (GBV)

In what has been termed a ‘pandemic’, South African women are under daily physical attack – we are literally fighting for our lives in what can only be equated to a war zone. According to the Daily Maverick Crime Stats Report:

“Women continue to bear the brunt of violent attacks in South Africa. In the first three months of 2023, 10 512 women were raped, 1 485 attempted murders of women were reported, 969 were killed, and over 15 000 were assaulted.”

What’s scary is that this is just the numbers that are reported.

These are very real challenges that can’t be overturned in one go.

But by acknowledging those ingrained prejudices and actually standing up for equality – no matter who you are – these seemingly insurmountable social issues can be taken down and we can ensure the future generation doesn’t have to fight the same fight.

SOURCES:
https://cge.org.za
https://www.hrw.org/
www.sabcnews.com
www.dailymaverick.co.za
https://www.figo.org/news/think-equal-womens-health-south-africa
https://mg.co.za/news/2021-07-08-hate-killings-of-black-lesbians-in-south-africa-2008-to-2018/

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