‘Keep sending the ladder down so others can climb up’

Read More

Good Governance Africa, in partnership with Attorney General Alliance-Africa, the Telkom Foundation, Boston City Campus and Mail & Guardian held a hybrid event — Africa’s girl child and the struggle for health, education and agency — at the JSE in Johannesburg on 11 October, the international day of the girl child.

The event concentrated on advancing conversations and action around Africa’s girl child, reimagining a better today and future for the benefit of all. We aimed to bring together experts, practitioners, policymakers and activists in the space to share, learn, and agitate for change.

Coinciding with the launch of the latest issue of GGA’s flagship publication Africa in Fact — which tells stories about, and by, Africa’s girl child, with contributions from a wide range of writers across the continent — speakers shared their insights, realities, challenges and possibilities in addressing how to improve the overall well-being and life chances of girls on this continent.

Vacillating between doom and gloom to inspiring optimism, from lamenting to celebrating, from hardship and struggle to activism and accountability, the event comprised three sessions — the first, an introduction followed by a panel discussion by tech-savvy women focusing on the opportunities and obstacles in education.The second session, sometimes challenging but also humorous, was led by the Minister of Menstruation and focused on reproductive health. The third session tackled the issues of agency and advocacy — how to make it happen.

The participants agreed that it’s tough being a girl in Africa. This is evidenced through the themes of silence and invisibility, exclusion and dissuasion, the often hidden triple burden women face (labour, reproduction, community), unequal distribution of household chores, menstruation and period poverty, child marriage, the call to help uplift more women and how policies can be implemented and politicians be made accountable.

The event kicked off with Kim Robinson from AGA-Africa, who called for strategies to turn knowledge into action. She emphasised the importance of education and being open-minded to new possibilities. Next up was Chukukere Unamba-Oparah, programme director from Kenya who talked about the scourge of human trafficking across Africa, where the majority of victims are girls and women.

Lebogang Ramafoko, executive director of Oxfam SA, spoke passionately about the systematic betrayal of the girl child and how we are all complicit in perpetuating the system that oppresses girls, from the gendered nature of care work (time-consuming and unpaid), to being ignored, pathologised and marginalised, from violence against women and girls to self-stigmatisation. This perpetuates the culture of what it takes to be a good girl — usually, obedient, subservient, humble, unambitious.

“Violence and control of women are seen as normal, therefore it is expected that children will experience these various injustices,” Robinson said, referring to Pumla Gqola’s provocative book, “Female Fear Factory”. She said girls are under siege while society gets away with the systemic exclusion of girls and the lack of provision of services.

“The focus on the girl child must be a reflection of our complicity as a society to uphold violent systems that oppress women from birth and how we have benefited from them,” she said.

Sarah Mthintso, chief executive of the Telkom Foundation, spoke of the programmes undertaken by the organisation that revealed what it means to work with children in underprivileged communities and the support structures needed to be effective.Challenges on the ground include the need for social workers in schools, teacher development and academic support.

One of the challenges that they found during the Covid-19 lockdowns was the unequal division of household chores, where girls would miss remote learning sessions because they were looking after younger siblings, fetching water, cooking and cleaning. The gender forecast is also apparent in the names girls and boys are given — for example, Palesa (flower) or Mandla (power) — which define what society expects.

Preparing girls for jobs of the future

Mthintso introduced the three participants in the first session — education and technology. Three smart young black women took to the stage for an inspiring discussion on the possibilities that open up when girls get the opportunity to study.Toni Nkosi Ramatswi, programme manager at Telkom Foundation, spoke about their projects and the challenges in the field and how to conquer the fear of failure. “If you don’t know, don’t give up — find out.” Technology has changed our lives and has always been a part of her generation.

Tech-savvy: Sarah Mthintso, chief executive of Telkom Foundation, in conversation with Toni Nkosi Ramatswi, programme manager at Telkom Foundation, Dr Rachel Sibande, UN entrepreneur and Google scholar from Malawi and GGA’s lead researcher, Busisipho Siyobi.

Dr Rachel Sibande, UN entrepreneur and Google scholar from Malawi, helps to train young people in technology. The journey is a lonely one, she said, noting she was the only woman (and only black) candidate in her doctorate class of 20+. She emphasised that women leaders must “keep sending the ladder down so other girls can climb up”. Technology affects every part of life and we need to prepare girls for the jobs of the future.

GGA’s lead researcher, Busisipho Siyobi, joined in the conversation, saying we need to take stock of the key challenges. These vary from access to education to access to basic amenities like water. She said girls are not encouraged to take maths and science at school — a preconception that she won’t need it in their primary roles as caregivers.

The panellists agreed on the importance of STEM subjects, coding, engineering (Ramatswi used the example of making clay pots which entails scientific principles) and robotics, but not only for pursuing jobs in the tech industry — technology can be used in all fields, can be self-taught and it is never too late to start learning.

Menstruation and menopause

Moderated by Candice Chirwa, author of Flow: The Book About Menstruation and in the process of completing her PhD in development studies, the second session included Habiba Osman, executive secretary of the Human Rights Commission in Malawi, Andile Dube, SA Unicef Adolescent Development specialist, deputy Minister of Social Development, Hendrietta Ipeleng Bogopane-Zulu and Beryl Adhiambo Opiyo from the Kisumu Feminist Society in Kenya.

This session examined the complex interplay of various elements that impede girls’ overall well-being, including the silence around the natural phase of menstruation and how women’s sexuality is kept “invisible”. The conversation on menstrual and sexual reproductive health has been elevated, they agreed. However, there is much work to be done to debunk the myths and stigma, as well as the practicality of keeping girls in school while they have their period.

Ipeleng Bogopane-Zulu pointed out that although there are drives to collect pads, how are girls going to use them if they don’t have panties? Chirwa commented that the word “sanitary” should not be used, as it reinforces the notion that menstruation is “dirty”.

Another theme was how to break the cycle of poverty by encouraging girls to attend school and complete their studies.

The panellists agreed that a one-solution-fits-all approach is not possible, citing the huge differences between growing up in a rural village compared to urban or peri-urban areas.

Opiyo said: “Poverty should never be defined by the level of education an individual has. Community initiatives aimed at women are very important. We need to invest in women for them to be able to sustain themselves and take their children to school. When you educate one girl, it will be an extension of educating the wider community.”

Call for action — how to implement policies

The third and final session was led by GGA head of department, Christine Dube. She was joined by Engwase Mwale, chief executive of Financial Sector Deepening Zambia, Dr Linda Ncube Nkomo, chief executive of LoveLife, Bafana Khumalo, executive director of Sonke Gender Justice, and Mashudu Nefale, senior clinical psychologist at University of Pretoria.

Agency and advocacy: Mashudu Nefale, senior clinical psychologist at University of Pretoria, Bafana Khumalo, executive director of Sonke Gender Justice, GGA head of department Christine Dube, Dr Linda Ncube Nkomo, chief executive of LoveLife, and Engwase Mwale, chief executive of Financial Sector Deepening Zambia.

The panellists lamented that the challenges, — such as the unpaid and unequal division of housework and care, lack of opportunities and education, femicide, female genital mutilation, forced marriage, and so forth — facing the girl child in Africa today are the same issues that were brought to the table 20 to 25 years ago.This points to the difficulties in implementing “all these beautiful policies that we have”.

Mwale emphasised the importance of identifying financial partners in mobilising, organising and building capacity to provide the necessary services and programmes by providing platforms through which women can express themselves and let their voices be heard.

Nkomo stressed that policy must be advocated by the government, citing an example from 2019 of the first case of a 10-year-old girl being pregnant. Nkomo, whose focus is on rural communities, explained that girls are often forced to marry their rapists or her family may accept a goat as an apology for the abuse.People need to know that they are complicit in the crime when they do not report statutory rape. She added that we should be inclusive of men in the processes and efforts of gender equality.

Khumalo, the only male speaker at the event, agreed that men must join the conversation, but not as leaders or experts. He referred to Sonke’s Men Care programme as an example of how men can get involved to “turn things around” and act out of public interest rather than being self-serving.

Nefale reminded the audience that mind and body cannot be separated and while there are insufficient conversations concerning sexual and reproductive health, mental health is largely silenced. She emphasised that parents and caregivers must take note of changes in a child’s behaviour as an indication that something could be wrong and to use language that promotes open dialogue.

The panellists agreed that in order to implement policies and change, traditional leaders must be brought on board but that this presents a huge challenge in terms of confronting cultural norms and values that undermine women and girls.

Two young women from the audience noted the absence of girls at the event, asking where the platforms are for young women to speak out and raise awareness.Dube pointed out that the Africa in Fact issue contained riveting accounts from girls relating their traumatic experiences as well as achievements.

The event concluded with Dr Janet Viljoen from Boston City Campus, giving a brief overview and highlighting the “awakening” call for community engagement and the critical need to identify strategies to turn knowledge into action.

She challenged the audience with three questions: “Are we carrying other women and helping them to succeed? Are we contributing to the systemic oppression of women? How can I contribute to turning policies from a dusty pile into a living document?”