For two years, *Thandekile Ngwenya, a candidate attorney, has driven the same route to her workplace, a law firm in Rosebank, without incident. On 18 January, this changed. Due to load-shedding, the traffic lights were out, and Ngwenya felt herself…
Women’s participation in the economy took centre stage at the launch of this year’s 16 days of activism for no violence against women and children, which kicked off at the Nasrec Expo Centre in Johannesburg earlier this afternoon. Led…
South Africa is feeling the impact of climate change. The recent floods in KwaZulu-Natal, consistent droughts in the Western Cape, water scarcity, and heat waves all over the country are examples of some of the consequences. And as a result, it…
President Cyril Ramaphosa declared gender-based violence and femicide as South Africa’s first pandemic and said society was at war with women and children. The President spoke during the second day of the 2nd Presidential Summit on GBVF at Gallagher Estate…
The Inter-Ministerial Committee on Gender-Based Violence and Femicide (IMC-GBVF) outlined the progress made by the government in implementing the National Strategic Plan (NSP) on GBVF. Led by its Chairperson, Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, the briefing set the stage ahead of the…
With at least 13% of women in developing countries bearing children while they are still kids themselves, four global health giants have joined forces to end this scourge of teenage pregnancies. To counter this, the 2gether4SRHR programme, together with UNAIDS,…
On the outskirts of Potchefstroom in the North West, members of the Kanana community have taken it upon themselves to help fight the gender-based violence (GBV) scourge. With South Africa’s president, Cyril Ramaphosa, having declared GBV as South Africa’s second…
*Matthew* (26), is a Cape Town-based copywriter who was sexually abused by his domestic worker. The abuse began when he was eight years old and ended two years later. “My mother would work long hours and would get back home…
At least 150 people rape cases are reported to the police daily in South Africa. According to the Medical Research Council, only one in nine cases are reported, so the real number could be closer to 1500 cases. Of the…
Healthcare workers (HCWs) are going from caregivers to victims of violence at the hands of patients across the country. Doctors and nurses, particularly from Gauteng, have reported being slapped, scratched and kicked while on duty. A junior doctor recalled the…
By the time she turned 18-years-old *Lisakhanya Dzedze had already experimented with CAT, cocaine, and marijuana. She also smoked and drank heavily. Her drug use started at 15 with a puff of weed. Her story is not unusual. A 2018 study…
Access to healthcare, treatment for HIV/Aids, and support for survivors of gender-based violence (GBV) remains a struggle for South African women. This is as International Day of Action for Women’s Health is marked. This year’s theme is #WomensHealthMatters. Shalen Gajadhar, the…
Mulalo Mutshekwa* fell pregnant in 2019 when she was 15-years-old. The grade 10 learner at the time, is from Makovha, a village in the Vhembe district in Limpopo. She was in a relationship with her then 18-year-old boyfriend. “I met…
The possible overturning of a law that protects a woman’s right to abortion in the United States, might not have legal implications for South Africa but there are concerns it could impact funding for various health programmes in the country.…
Gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF) is a profound and widespread problem in South Africa. Given the ferocious nature of this ‘pandemic’, collective efforts are needed to end this scourge of violence against mostly women and children. Director-General at the Department…