GBV declaration must be followed by financially support to be effective

PRESIDENT Cyril Ramaphosa’s declaration of gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF) as a national crisis is just empty words without a concrete plan on how to financially capacitate the organisations at the forefront of curbing the scourge. 

While this declaration on the eve of the recent G20 Summit last is to be commended, it should not have taken this long for it to be made, especially when one looks at the alarming statistics of women and children killed in this country daily. 

Citing Stats SA’s most recent governance, public safety and justice survey 2023/24, Portfolio Committee on Social Development chairperson Bridget Masango, says:

• 295 000 individuals experienced assault in the last year and 23% of these assaults happened inside the home. Sexual offences remain persistently high, with thousands of women and children victimised every year. 
• Only 1.9% of assault survivors received counselling, showing how deeply under-resourced and overstretched our psychosocial support systems remain.
• 80% of women feel unsafe walking alone at night, and many report taking drastic measures to protect themselves, including limiting their movement.

The stats show that announcements alone do not go far enough in addressing an issue affecting the most vulnerable in our society. Worse still when the government has been either underfunding or has completely stopped supporting NGOs providing trauma counselling and other related services to GBV survivors. 

Ask any organisation in this space, they will provide a detailed account of how they are hampered by the bureaucracy they have to overcome when seeking government support. 

Ilitha Labantu spokesperson Siyabulela Monakali is correct in saying the declaration falls short on the urgency required to tackle GBVF.

“While public declarations have become a recurring feature in our national discourse, particularly under the current administration, they have seldom translated into sustained implementation or measurable impact. This moment should therefore mark a departure from episodic dialogue towards comprehensive, properly resourced, survivor-centred intervention, reinforced by strong accountability mechanisms and coordinated action across all sectors of society. Anything less will merely repeat patterns of outrage without systemic change.”

Without this urgency and details on funding, the declaration translates to a PR stunt that served to appease the G20 leaders visiting the country, while attempting to take the steam out of the planned national shut down. The declaration will only become meaningful when the president puts resources where his mouth is. 

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