Gauteng first to host GBV summit ahead of national event
Gauteng is the first of all nine provinces to hold the pre-summit gathering on gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF) ahead of the planned national event in November.
The two-day gathering at the Birchwood Hotel on the East Rand saw nearly 600 delegates from relevant stakeholders in attendance, including non-governmental organisations, faith.-based organisations, the police, and the taxi industry among others.
Speaker Esther Maluleke from the Department of Women, Children, and Persons with Disabilities told delegates at the summit that funding remains a challenge.
"We are requesting provinces, all nine provinces, to fund the summits because we don't have a budget that we can share. Even at national level we are still struggling to see how we are going to fund this summit."
This comes as the president has been widely criticised for not upholding the pledge of availing R1.6 billion towards what has been dubbed the second pandemic in the country.
The purpose of the summit is to report back on the work undertaken by the province since the launch of the National Strategic Plan (NSP) on gender-based violence and femicide and the programmes implemented as per the pillars of the NSP.
Maluleke was tasked with outlining the purpose of the NSP by the national government and the objectives of the summit.
"We want to deepen our understanding of the scourge, we need to make sure we look at the impact of different targets as far as GBV is concerned. For the implementation of the strategy, we will be looking at progress, challenge, and opportunities that exist come up with recommendations in terms what do we need to do differently; how can we accelerate and amplify the strategy, and how can we strengthen accountability."
Gauteng Premier David Makhura will deliver the keynote address.
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