By Johnathan Paoli
As the country commemorates Women’s Month, President Cyril Ramaphosa has called for women from all walks of life to play a leading role in the upcoming National Dialogue process, set to be launched at the National Convention in Pretoria this Friday.
In his weekly message to the nation, Ramaphosa reflected on the legacy of the 1956 Women’s March on the Union Buildings, framing it as both a protest against apartheid-era pass laws and a “powerful assertion of women’s agency”.
“From the protests against the pass laws, to the so-called beer hall protests of 1959, to the rent boycotts of the 1980s, to the contemporary protest movements against gender-based violence, South African women have a proud history of standing up and being counted,” he said.
The National Dialogue is intended to bring together individuals and organisations from across society to find “common ground and new solutions” for South Africa’s complex challenges.
According to the president, women’s participation in this process is not optional but essential, given their demographic majority and the fact that every major political, social and economic issue impacts them directly.
“Women make up more than half of our country’s population. Women are affected by every political, social and economic issue in the country. Likewise, every crisis, whether it is unemployment, crime or climate change, affects women equally and, in some instances, more than men,” Ramaphosa said.
The government has committed to ensuring equal representation of women across all structures supporting and guiding the National Dialogue.
This includes deliberate mobilisation of women from varied backgrounds, young and old, rural and urban, from different linguistic and ethnic communities, as well as women with disabilities and LGBTQI+ women.
Ramaphosa stressed that women’s experiences were not homogenous.
“Although they may be similar in certain respects, the issues and challenges facing rural women and women in traditional communities differ vastly from those of women in urban areas with access to education, resources and public services,” he explained.
He referenced last year’s South African Women’s Pre-National Dialogue, convened by the Institute of Justice and Reconciliation, which emphasised the need for the process to address a broad range of issues affecting women and to reflect diverse perspectives and priorities.
As part of the Government of National Unity’s strategic priorities, which include inclusive growth, job creation, poverty alleviation, reducing the cost of living and building a capable, ethical state, Ramaphosa reiterated the commitment to mainstreaming gender in all policy development.
He situated the call for women’s participation within a broader historical context, pointing to decades of organised women’s activism. The president credited the Federation of South African Women, formed in 1954, with influencing the inclusion of gender equality clauses in the Freedom Charter.
With the first National Convention of the dialogue process taking place in Women’s Month, Ramaphosa called on all sectors of society to ensure women’s full participation as a tribute to the pioneers of 1956.
The dialogue is expected to cover a range of pressing issues from economic reform and political accountability to social cohesion and climate resilience.
Civil society, political parties, faith-based groups, traditional leaders, labour, business and community organisations have all been invited to contribute.
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