Legendary women’s rights activists and their young counterparts arrived at Bellville Campus this week for three days of mentoring and robust discussions on issues affecting them.

Hosted by the Ilitha Labantu in partnership with CPUT, the 25th Anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Civil Society Consultative Forum drew about a hundred people which included elders, young women, and men, many from non-governmental organisations (NGOs), former ministers, government and Chapter 9 institutions officials.

The delegates came with one common goal to advance women’s rights issues and tackle gender-based violence against women.

The assemblage also served as a consultative conference, as this year the global community will mark the 25th anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women and the adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action in 1995. This anniversary will take place at the 64th session of the Commission on the Status of Women at the United Nations (UN) Headquarters in New York in March. Delegates will come from the UN entities, member states and UN Economic and Social Council accredited NGOs.

Ilitha Labantu founder and honorary president, Mandisa Monakali, said they hoped to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. “It’s important for us to advance the accomplishment of gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls and stop all forms of violence against women and children,” Monakali said. The group of women who were part the South African delegation in Beijing which included the late Winnie Madikizela-Mandela also shared their challenges and experiences on the road to Beijing and urged the young women who included student leaders from the four public universities in the Western Cape to pluck knowledge from them and come up with new ideas so that they can take the baton to the next generation.

CPUT Central SRC Secretary-general, Nonele Ganyile said the conference was very informative and created a platform for young and old to share ideas “because patriarchy affects all age groups”.

Former Minister in the Presidency responsible for Women, Bathabile Dlamini, applauded CPUT for partnering with the NGOs and civil society in advancing women’s issues. “The conference here is relevant as we discussed issues affecting women and fight gender-based violence against women and children. This will go a long way in preparation for New York."

Acting Director-General of the Ministry in the Presidency Responsible for Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities, Shoki Tshabalala said the conference was a thought-provoking experience and also looked at sharing the available resources. “Let’s forget individualism and focus on finding common goals”.

“I am proud of CPUT for opening space for an NGO that serves people from the slums. For me, what derived from this is that universities should not be abstract from the community that surrounds them,” said Nepad advisor, Dr. Litha Musyimi-Ogana.

Written by Aphiwe Boyce
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The Faculty of Business and Management Sciences kicked off the Women’s month celebrations at CPUT with an exciting webinar under the theme: Choose to Challenge.

The event featured a number of trailblazing women including HERS-SA director Brightness Mangolothi, Attorney Rehana Parker, PhD candidate and founder of cultural education brand KroesRocks, Simone Thomas and Ortem Callaghan, a spoken word artist.

Choose to Challenge was the theme for International Women’s Day 2021 and resonated with the Faculty.

In her opening remarks, Nonkosi Tyolwana, Director of CPUT’s Centre for Diversity, Inclusivity and Social Change, said that while there have been important strides in promoting gender equality and women empowerment, “our work is far from finished”.

“That is why today the faculty is working towards a better day for women and girls. And yet this mission of gender equality and women empowerment needs constant nourishing and multi-stakeholder engagement as well as active support both physically, mentally, morally and materially.”

Mangolothi quoted from the Global Gender Gap Report 2020 which showed that it would take almost a century to attain gender parity.

She said the rise of women was not about the fall of men.

“I want you to apply for those positions, I want you to apply for those awards and I want you to mentor women and that’s how we can actually take up spaces.”

Dr Desiree Scholtz, the Faculty’s Assistant Dean: Teaching & Learning and chair of the planning team for the event, said it was hoped that the take-away from the event would be how different women from different backgrounds have chosen to own their space, to share their stories “about how each of us can make a difference to others’ lives in one way or another”.

Senior lecturer, Mandie Richards said the webinar allowed an opportunity for women to reflect on the progressions as well as the limitations, and to share their experiences and power of influence so as to uplift and inspire women.

“The platform is also a reminder that there is a great deal of work which still has to be done so as to challenge the status quo and social injustices, and that as women we need to continue to pay it forward so that we create a future which is inclusive, thereby creating a positive, more diverse future for current and future generations.”

Written by Ilse Fredericks

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