The Minister in the Presidency responsible for Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities, Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, will this week host a policy dialogue on the prevention of gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF).

The two-day session, which will get underway on Tuesday, 26 March 2024, will serve as a platform for policymakers, stakeholders, experts and advocates to review the existing GBVF prevention policies and provide an opportunity for stakeholders to share insights, research findings, best practices, and lessons learned from global best practices on GBVF prevention initiatives.

‘The exchange of knowledge by stakeholders will help to inform and enrich policy formulation and also raise awareness about the prevalence and consequences of GBVF among policymakers, government officials, civil society organisations and the private sector,’ the department of Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities said in a statement.

Dlamini Zuma will be joined by the European Union’s Ambassador to South Africa, Dr S
andra Kramer, and Head of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Gender Unit SADC Secretariat, Phemelo Maiketso.

President Cyril Ramaphosa pronounced GBVF as a national pandemic, based on its magnitude and severity, resulting in the development of the Comprehensive National GBVF Prevention Strategy aimed at reducing incidences of GBVF.

The National Strategic Plan on GBVF was adopted in 2020 as a society-wide programme to end gender-based violence and femicide.

The plan has six pillars, including accountability, coordination and leadership; prevention and rebuilding; justice, safety and protection; response, care support and healing; economic power, and research and information.

Source: South African Government News Agency