The impact of women’s movements’ activism experiences on gender transformation policies in democratic South Africa

abstract

Women’s movement activism has formed significant conduits through which the advancement of gender transformation policies is enacted in South Africa (SA). Through their experiences – strongly rooted in women’s movement activism and its advocacy for gender equity and women’s empowerment – women activists arguably help push the transformation agenda in gender transformation policies, including gender mainstreaming (GM) and Employment Equity (EE). A qualitative study conducted in 2017 with women leaders in SA’s democratic national Government found a link between women’s movements and democratic governments’ recognition of gender transformation policies. Based on state feminist theoretical thinking, this article views and analyses the impact of women’s movement activism experiences in enabling women in leadership positions and in helping them to push the gender transformation agenda in policy formulation policies. It thus argues that women’s movements’ activism in SA has contributed to and had some positive impacts on the sexist and patriarchal political, economic and social institutions, gradually engendering the recognition of women and promoting their participation in these institutions.

However, the authors also contend that social environments in government structures are marred with barriers that impede women leaders with activism experiences, who actively and continually push for feminist agendas with substantive gender transformation outcomes. Although transformation policies are prioritised in democratic SA, gendered discourses still mainly disadvantage women across racial identities, gender orientations and (dis)abilities, to name a few. Even so, women’s movements’ activism still provides women with the experience of being agents of gender emancipation in their respective spaces in SA and Africa at large.

keywords:

• women’s movements
• activism
• gender mainstreaming
• employment equity
• transformation

Notes

1. The 46 departments are as follows: Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing; Arts and Culture; Basic Education; Civilian Secretariat for Police; Communications; Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs; Correctional Services; Defence; Economic Development; Energy; Environmental Affairs; Government Communication and Information System; Health; Higher Education and Training; Home Affairs; Human Settlements; Independent Police Investigative Directorate; International Relations and Cooperation; Justice and Constitutional Development; Labour; Military Veterans; Mineral Resources; National School of Government; National Treasury; Performance Monitoring and Evaluation; Public Enterprises; Public Service and Administration; Public Service Commission; Public Works; Rural Development and Land Reform; Science and Technology; Social Development; South African Police Service; South African Revenue Service; Small Business Development; State Security Agency; Sport and Recreation SA; Statistics SA; Telecommunications and Postal Services; Tourism; Trade and Industry; Traditional Affairs; Transport; Water and Sanitation; Women; and The Presidency.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Gabi Mkhize

GABI MKHIZE lectures in the School of Social Sciences, specialising in Gender Studies, at the University of KwaZulu-Natal. She has a PhD in Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies from The Ohio State University, USA. Her publications and research interests include gender and development, gendered violence, identity politics, gender and disability, gender and tourism, intersectionality, postcolonial feminisms, critical black feminist thought and black studies. Email: [email protected]

Nwabisa Mgcotyelwa-Ntoni

NWABISA MGCOTYELWA-NTONI is an Assistant Director (Social and Labour Plan Directorate) at the Department of Mineral Resources in the Western Cape region. She obtained her PhD Degree at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in September 2018. Her research interests include feminisms, gender mainstreaming, and women’s empowerment and policy. Email: [email protected]