BUSI KHESWA | Economic empowerment key to women’s emancipation

This year’s Women's Month in SA was commemorated under the theme: “Accelerating socio-economic opportunities for empowerment of women.”

However, women continue to face greater vulnerabilities in society and in the labour market. This is mostly because of their lack of education and training, the tendency to channel women in certain occupations, the continuous heavy burdens of unpaid domestic work, childbearing and childcare, which restrict the time and energy available for income earning activities.

Gender-based violence continues to be the cancer that is ravaging the very soul of our society.  Women and children have the right to be safe in their homes and in communities. Most of the abuse takes place in the home and the abuser is usually a person the victim knows and cares about.

Notwithstanding the fact that GBV happens to any gender, it is worth noting that women are the worst affected. There is a myriad of reasons for this, many research material have also indicated that the economic vulnerability of women often propels gender-based violence.

With women constituting a higher unemployment rate in the country, women struggle to secure livelihoods outside employment. In most sectors even when they are employed, they earn less than men. Furthermore, women also struggle to succeed in entrepreneurship. As such, this makes women vulnerable to abuse, as they cannot exercise their independent social and economic existence outside the confines and controls of the male partner.

While our country has made numerous strides helping to advance women, their full potential in our society in ensuring and protecting rights for all has been a constant struggle for government and social partners in the unstable and ever-changing economy.

Government has made significant progress in empowering women in the political, public, and educational spheres, but the marginalisation of poor women severely compromises progress.

The Gauteng department of social development continues to do its bit in economic empowerment of women by funding their businesses, and assisting through the provision of training, resources and other support forms to start and grow their enterprises.

In 2022/23 financial year, 22,297 women participated in economic empowerment programmes organised by the province. Women benefited from overall social development department’s procurement spend, with 40.26% spent on women-led businesses.

This is in line with Women’s Day commeration speech by President Cyril Ramaphosa at the Union Buildings. Among various programmes and projects the president mentioned as part of the government's plan to help women, was outlining the quest for women economic empowerment. This can be achieved through public procurement by allocating not less than 40% to women-owned businesses.

With Gauteng government’s continuous support to female co-operatives, organisations such as Modipakoma Sewing and multipurpose Primary Cooperative, which inspires women in Kagiso Ext 12 on the West rand, have benefited from the province's efforts to uplift women's enterprises.

Modipakoma was founded in 2016, after they saw the Gauteng department of social development invite to unemployed women with sewing skills to form co-operatives that will be able to make school uniform. Before being awarded a contract to manufacture school uniform they used to sew garments for the locals.

The co-operative's women said it was not easy when they started seven years ago, since they did not have skills in running a business operation. Due to the guidance and the support they received from the department, they were able to expand and create more jobs.

Apart from school uniforms, the co-operative now produces PPE, clothes for private wear and church uniforms.

The interventions such as the one Modipakoma women benefited from may seem like a drop in the ocean for desired outcomes for our society, but the key is starting and building towards the legacy that government dreams of – women who are able to fend for themselves.

The emancipation of women cannot be achieved without economic empowerment, as President Ramaphosa also said at his Women's Day speech.

• Kheswa works for Gauteng department of social development