Media Statement

11 February 2021

SONA speech thin on detail needed to tackle unabated GBV and Femicide crisis

- NGO demands transparency and accountability on GBVF structures and mechanisms–

Cape Town, 11 February 2021 — MOSAIC Training, Service & Healing Centre says this year's SONA speech lacks the detail and practical solutions needed to tackle the country's unabating gender-based violence (GBV) and femicide pandemic.

MOSAIC says while President Cyril Ramaphosa reiterated the 'scourge of GBV' (alternatively, insert any other now-regular sayings about GBV said by the president); his speech was deafeningly silent on the next steps required to eradicate GBV and femicide.

"Sadly, GBV and femicide were a footnote in the president's speech. We were looking forward to a detailed action plan that goes beyond pledges and rhetoric to decisively and urgently tackle this pandemic of violence," says Advocate Tarisai Mchuchu-Macmillan, Executive Director of anti-GBV non-governmental organisation (NGO) MOSAIC.

Lack of transparency on the administration of GBV resources

 The president stated that while the government and its partners had made progress in implementing the National Strategic Plan (NSP), it had to urgently divert national resources to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, a move that impacted GBV and femicide programmes. However, he added that government had allocated nearly R21 billion over the three years of the Medium-Term Expenditure Framework to support all six pillars of the NSP.

"This allocation sounds impressive. However, we need to know how these funds are going to be administered.  We have the same questions about how the R1.6 billion mentioned in last year's SONA address was allocated; it was reportedly reprioritised to support a GBV emergency action plan until the end of this financial year," says Mchuchu-Macmillan.

No accountability on GBVF structures and mechanisms

 The president mentioned the recently launched Gender-Based Violence and Femicide (GBVF) Response Fund launched last Thursday (stating that… insert descriptor). The private sector fund aims to provide financial infrastructure support for implementing the NSP on GBVF response in South Africa. It is also meant to facilitate accountability and governance for private sector funds and facilitate operational and strategic cohesion between donors and government.

"We don't have clarity on which bodies will facilitate this work but are concerned about repeating past mistakes by setting up additional structures with little monitoring, oversight and accountability for meaningful outcomes. We need to ensure that organisations that have developed the best community-based solutions and interventions will get the financial resources to prevent and respond to domestic violence and GBV."

The community-based NGO says while funds have been allocated to the NSP on GBVF which was launched last year, there is still no transparent process or decisive next steps for the coordinating structure. "There has been a lack of transparency on the governing structures that are supposed to drive the NSP GBVF agenda and little to no consultation with the civil society sector which has been at the forefront of delivering GBV services for years. There is still no clarity on whether the National Council on Gender-Based Violence and Femicide has it been set up yet or what the process for setting it up will entail.  If we are to have real successes in fighting GBV, we need to ensure that we centre transparency and accountability."

In March last year, a month after SONA 2020, Cabinet approved the GBVF-NSP and the establishment of the National Council on GBVF (NCGBVF) which would be responsible for implementing the GBVF-NSP. The structure of this council remains unclear. The president also did not share the progress reports made to his office about implementing targets set out in the NSP by bodies such as the Department of Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities.

"At the GBVF Fund launch last week, the president mentioned that he had received a report detailing the expenditure associated with GBV-related programmes in every government department. We are disappointed that the speech did not reveal the report's contents," says Mchuchu-Macmillan.

Women & GBV absent from heavily economy- focused speech

Despite being focused on the economy, MOSAIC says the speech failed to link urgent economic empowerment and GBV. "Less than two months ago, the government's theme for 16 Days of Activism for no violence against women and children campaign highlighted the importance of women's economic empowerment as an integral component to eradicate GBV and femicide. However, the speech did not mention women and GBV specifically in its post-COVID economic recovery measures," says Mchuchu- Macmillan.

The NGO says it witnessed how COVID – and its resulting economic consequences – placed an increased financial strain on families, and how this, in turn, led to increased violence against women and children in many homes. "As COVID-19 began to bite harder, we also had increased demand for food relief, in addition to our other sources of support."

Call for detailed GBV action plan in next week's Budget

 The NGO says GBV continues to be a deadly threat to South African women in addition to COVID-19 and that government should address it with the same urgency, agility and preparation.

"The president, as both Head of State and Government, uses SONA to set out the governments priorities for the coming year and highlight the achievements and challenges of the previous year. The lack of detail on GBV in his speech  reporting implies that the lives of millions of women are not high enough on the national priority list," says Mchuchu- Macmillan.'

ENDS

For more information, inquiries or requests for interviews, please contact:

Neo Khumalo

Communications consultant

E: neo@mosaic.org.za

T: +27 067 640 6032 (WhatsApp Calls and messaging)/ +44 7823 819472

About MOSAIC

MOSAIC is a community-based non-governmental organisation (NGO) that works to prevent and reduce abuse and domestic violence. This is achieved by providing holistic, integrated services when incidences occur, and supporting clients through the process of healing and rebuilding their lives after a traumatic event.

MOSAIC creates an enabling environment through our holistic and integrated five-pillar service model

• Access to justice – psychosocial and legal support provided by court support workers, and psychosocial support from MOSAIC's Sexual Violence Counsellors at Thuthuzela Care Centres
• Support and Healing – Counselling Services, Support Groups and Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights;
• Engaging Men and Boys- Training and Workshops, Support Groups and Counselling for Men
• Empower- Education and Skills Training, Rights Training, Youth GBV Life Skills and Community Dialogues
• Advocacy and Policy- Advancing rights of women and girls by providing evidence from our services to change the system.

The organisation was established in 1993 in response to high levels of violence against women in South Africa, particularly in the form of domestic violence, and in recognition of the silence that many women suffer in unnecessarily, due to either a lack of knowledge of their rights, a lack of confidence to access justice for themselves, or both. MOSAIC's registered head office is in Cape Town, South Africa.

For further information about MOSAIC, please visit www.mosaic.org.za