A matter of opinion: the National Gender Opinion Survey conducted by the Commission on Gender Equality

abstract

This focus turns the spotlight on the National Gender Opinion Survey, currently being conducted by the Commission on Gender Equality (CGE). The survey is a contribution towards fulfilling the CGE's constitutional mandate to promote, protect and monitor gender equality. The project involves interrogating and collating the gendered perceptions and opinions of ordinary citizens in the areas of gender-based violence, education, health and economic empowerment. Its data collection approach is three-pronged: closed-ended questionnaires, in-depth interviews and focus group discussions with civil society organisations. For the purposes of this journal, the focus will highlight the findings of the focus group discussions only, as a comprehensive picture of the total findings is not yet available. Despite the obvious cultural, demographic and political specificities that constitute each province, many similarities in regard to the lived realities of many men and women in South Africa emerged from the focus group discussions. The most salient of these findings will be highlighted and an attempt made to locate and understand these within and through feminist scholarship.

keywords:

• gender-based violence
• education
• health
• economic empowerment