women at the forefront of change in sa
30 September 2008

Mr Manuel said many South African community organisations and non-governmental organisations illustrated the power of women activists at the forefront of social change and broad-based development.  Speaking at the South African Women in Dialogue (SAWID) forum, he said: “In achieving broad equality of access to education, South Africa is well ahead of many peer group countries.”

He said the forum’s programme would provide a wonderful opportunity to reflect on the progress made in South Africa since 1994, and the challenges that still lie ahead. Mr Manuel said he believed South Africa’s approach to social assistance grants as a primary source of income support to poor families provided an excellent example of the social benefits associated with income transfers to women as beneficiaries and caregivers.  “I know that South African women in business can bring encouragement to those in other countries who face entrenched barriers of access, whether in the credit market for small enterprises or in executive and board-level decision-making, but I am equally conscious of the enormity of the challenges we still face. We know from South African experience that there are strong and persistent gender dimensions to vulnerability in old age or disability, the risk of unemployment and the associated threat of chronic household poverty,” he said.

The minister explained the spotlight must be focused on the role of women in poverty reduction, due to issues such as HIV and AIDS and violence against women.  Women also needed to be involved in South Africa’s response to the AIDS-induced phenomenon of child-headed households, said Mr Manuel.  “It is equally important for us to take a hard look at our performance as a country in achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). 

“I want to draw your attention to MDG 5, which calls on the world to reduce by three quarters the maternal mortality ratio between 1990 and 2015. “In 1998 our maternal mortality ratio was 150 per 100 000 deaths. In 2003 it was 166 per 100 000 deaths, and in 2004 it was 185 per 100 000 deaths,” he highlighted. The worrying feature, he said, is that the indicator was moving in the wrong direction.

Interestingly South Africa is not alone and it appears to be a factor in many developing countries, despite South Africa’s increased spending on health care provision.“It would be important to not only look at the allocations we have made but also on the outcomes and quality of spending in health care. And to ask the tough question about whether we are getting value for money.  “These are daunting challenges, and we have to appreciate that our goal, our vision, for a society that is just and fair, in which men and women share equally in work, family care and the fruits of rising prosperity, is still a distant target,” Mr Manuel said.

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