The majority of people living below the poverty line are women. Many girls around the world are still denied a basic education and women continue to dominate the world’s illiterate population.
By supporting women in society and giving them access to equal opportunities such as an education, jobs and health care, everyone benefits. Infant mortality rates go down, more children stay in school, incomes increase and the cycle of poverty can be broken. By volunteering on this programme with GVI, you will join a dedicated team of international volunteers assisting on sustainable and invaluable women’s empowerment initiatives. Although gender equality has come a long way for women from disadvantaged communities in South Africa, there is still quite a lot that needs to be done to ensure women have equal opportunities and skills to participate actively and effectively in South Africa’ economy. In the traditional township and rural culture, gender discrimination stems from patriarchal cultural and religious beliefs. This has spilled over into the workplace, especially in senior management roles, with only 16% held by women.
GVI aims to assist in gender equality through various educational, healthcare and income initiatives. We also aim to facilitate and encourage dialogues between empowered women, helping them to share positive stories of change and increasing the opportunity for them to become more involved in key community issues. After 20 years of democracy in South Africa, women are still struggling to compete with men, especially in the workplace. Women living in township and rural areas are often in the dark about opportunities available to them and have been socialized into taking lesser roles by traditional mind-sets. By ignoring this gender imbalance, women will continue to become less likely to be employed and increasingly vulnerable to social ailments such as poverty. In order to counteract this, GVI has set up numerous initiatives in local communities to help give women and girls a more equal future.
*Please Note: During holiday periods, all participants will join Cape Town’s school holiday program. During the school holiday period, all of GVI’s projects come together to work on at a local library to provide a safe and educational space for children of all ages. Activities here possibly include a wide range, from tutoring, reading and arts & crafts, as well as sports and wellbeing. When possible to do so, the team also runs soup kitchens on the ground in the community.
Highlights
- Contribute to impactful and sustainable women’s empowerment initiatives
- Explore Cape Town and revel in all its natural beauty
- Immerse yourself into a fascinating culture
- Enjoy life in one of the world’s most beautiful cities and make a serious difference in the lives of girls and women in the local community
- Hosting alternative income generation skills workshops
- Educating South African women on various health topics and prenatal care
- Providing additional educational support to young girls in local schools
