Lifestyle and Tech, School-related gender-based violence (SRGBV) affects millions of children, families, and communities. It involves acts or threats of sexual, physical or psychological violence occurring in and around schools, perpetrated because of gender norms and stereotypes, and enforced by unequal power dynamics. SRGBV has very real consequences in learners’ lives, ranging from low self-esteem and depression to early and unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections such as HIV. This violence also has a serious impact on educational outcomes, with many students avoiding school, achieving below their potential, or dropping out completely.
Last year, Vodacom partnered with the Department of Basic Education to place psycho-social professionals in a number of schools across the country to help fight the scourge of violence plaguing schools in this country.
To commemorate 16 days of activism against GBV, Professor Pumla Dineo Gqola, author, and gender activist, best known for her 2015 book Rape: A South African Nightmare, which won the 2016 Alan Paton Award will be a guest speaker. She is a professor of literature at Nelson Mandela University, where she holds the Research Chair in African Feminist Imagination. In her talk, she will explore ways society can use to address violence in schools in SA.