SA's Education Sector
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ONGOYE JULY | AUGUST 2020 ISSUE UNIZULU Produces its First Chartered Accountants SA’s Education Sector Still Not Transformed HONOURING the Great Women of UNIZULU PPO Borehole Initiative 1 Ongoye: July / August 2020 | Ongoye: July / August 2020 2 | Vice-Chancellor’s Message to UNIZULUPhenomenal As we celebrate Women’s Month at We celebrate this year’s Women that we are members of this movement. UNIZULU I pay tribute to all women in our institution who are still pushing the Month under the theme: Times have changed and we have to boundaries to make UNIZULU, and this “Generation Equality: adapt, it is also the first time that our country, more inclusive. We pay tribute Women’s Day is celebrated via virtual to the 20 000 courageous women who Realizing Women’s Rights platforms. However, the message that this marched to the Union Buildings on 9 August 1956 to protest against the for an Equal Future”. The day carries is still poignant and significant. introduction and extension of Pass Laws. concept of Generation Equality is Dr Mlambo-Ngcuka said: This year, we will commemorate Women’s Month and Women’s Day under difficult a global campaign and links South “For our society to attain the circumstances due to the Covid-19 and Africa to global efforts to achieve balance it needs for peace and the promulgation of national state of disaster. gender equality by 2030. prosperity, the future of manhood Equally, our country is facing another We want to join hands across spheres must include a broader definition pandemic of gender-based violence of government and with all sectors of of roles of both men and women”. and femicide, which has continued to society as part of a Decade of Action rear its ugly head. We are committed towards gender equality. We also want In conclusion, as the country continues to acknowledging the successes of the to see sustainable programmes that are to battle the Covid-19 pandemic, I women in our community, using our geared towards achieving this goal. encourage everyone in our University to collective voice and power to ensure that play their part in fighting this invisible the deaths of thousands of women and This year we are also commemorating enemy by wearing their masks, sanitising children and marginalised people in our 60 years of UNIZULU’s existence. I regularly and washing their hands with society are not in vain. pay homage to the first female Vice- Chancellor, Professor Gumbi and the soap and do their part to observe social However, I write this message with a previous Vice- Chancellor, Professor distancing. Together we must overcome lump in my throat due to disturbing Mazibuko for paving the way for women this pandemic. events over the past few weeks. The leaders. past few weeks have been exceptionally difficult and emotional for the UNIZULU I further pledge my support to Professor community. As you know, one of our Greyling and Professor Kunene. They are staff members, Mrs Fiksile Mabaso, was trendsetters in accentuating deanship recently assaulted and killed in horrific positions for women. This is a significant circumstances. The tragic news of her achievement towards transforming this death shook this University community University. down to its very foundations. The University is playing a role towards In Umthwalume, KZN Midlands the bodies dismantling patriarchy in all its forms of five women have been discovered as an underlying cause of many of the over the past six months. Unfortunately, injustices women face on a daily basis. the two suspects which confessed to the On the 30th of July 2020 the UNIZULU’s crime committed suicide. In so doing, HeforShe programme was launched they deprived the families of answers by the Executive Director: UN Women and justice regarding their dastardly acts. and former deputy president of RSA, Dr These events and others have left me Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka. HeForShe is shaken. I was deeply moved to experience an invitation for men and people of all first-hand the immensely caring response genders to stand in solidarity with women of this University community and to create a bold, visible and united force Professor X.A Mtose resilience amidst the storm. for gender equality and we are proud Vice-Chancellor 3 Ongoye: July / August 2020 | University Vice-Chancellor Celebrated by Local Artists The University of Zululand (UNIZULU) Besides the Vice-Chancellor, other worthy Vice-Chancellor Professor Xoliswa Mtose’s recipients included King Cetshwayo District leadership ethos was acknowledged and Mayor Nonhle Mkhulisi, Boardwalk Inkwazi celebrated by Simunye NRB, a group of artists Shopping Centre Marketing Manager who honoured female leaders in Richards Bay Angelique Wright, VW Richards Bay Manager during the month of August. Tracy Coetzer, and City of uMhlathuze Arts and Culture representative, Nana Tsatsi. The University Vice-Chancellor was honoured for her genuine interest in the betterment of students’ life and experience on campus “This is a token of by facilitating access opportunities through various national and international appreciation for all the work engagements that promote UNIZULU. The partnership between UNIZULU and Appelechian State in the United States of they do in the region,” said America is one of many opportunities that she spearheaded and gave exposure to Simunye NRB Chairperson students and staff members to network with international counterparts. Sphamandla `Singir “I am deeply honoured Ngema. and humbled by this kind gesture and commitment Later this month Simunye NRB will release from local artists,” said its new short film, Sekwanele, as part of their ongoing campaign against gender-based Professor Mtose. violence. Ongoye: July / August 2020 4 | HONOURING the Great Women of UNIZULU In honour of the hardworking women who contribute to the successful running of the University of Zululand (UNIZULU), the institution recently held a virtual event where the issue of gender equality was unpacked. The event was held under the theme sentiments acknowledging that there had, “Generation Equality: Realizing Women’s indeed, been progress with regards to Rights for an Equal Future”. Professor Xoliswa changing some of the “enablers for the triple Mtose, UNIZULU Vice-Chancellor, explained oppression of women”. She explained that that the topic emanates from a global the triple oppression phenomenon refers to campaign and links South Africa to global the repression of women based on their race, efforts to achieve gender equality by 2030. gender and class. In her view, the fact that UNIZULU has appointed three female vice- chancellors indicates that the institution is a “We want to join hands site to display and test transformation. She across spheres of stressed, however, that more barriers had to be broken in order for women to be empowered, government and with all hence she challenged Prof Mtose to prioritise sectors of society as part empowerment programmes for women in the institutions. of a Decade of Action In her presentation, Lisa Vetten, who was towards gender equality. invited as a guest speaker, said that inequality We also want to see is a multi-layered notion that needs to be viewed from different angles. She said it was sustainable programmes crucial to think deeply about what the end result will be when considering equality. Using that are geared towards an illustration, she pointed out that sometimes achieving this goal,” she in order to achieve equal outcomes, you may need to treat people differently because by said. giving them the same opportunity, achieving the same outcome is not necessarily One of the ways in which Prof Mtose said guaranteed. So when we think about equality the institution had contributed towards or try to achieve it, we need to decide whether transforming itself was through its leadership. we mean same opportunities but different In the past three terms, the University has had outcomes or both same opportunities and female vice-chancellors. She also noted that outcomes. She used various statistics of areas in the academic space, two of the institution’s where inequality clearly exists, paying specific faculties are being led by female deans. attention to the gender pay gap. Looking at the data presented, it was apparent that a lot UNIZULU Council Chair Nomarashiya Caluza, of factors influence pay gap, namely age, race, in her opening remarks, shared the same skilled/unskilled status and gender. 5 Ongoye: July / August 2020 | While the data analysis showed gaps in terms of the aforementioned factors, it was unequivocal We also need to think that white men get the lion’s share of income at about how groups and the top and bottom part of the pay scale. categories constructed. “We can’t think of What characteristics are inequality in simple we looking at to try and terms. We have to think determine how inequality of it as being layered is happening, and and situated. Gender when we create these inequality is quite clearly boundaries, who do we shaped and influenced include and how do we by race, age, professional exclude? And when we status, by whether you think about inequality, work in a private sector, are we unintentionally by whether you work creating new forms of in a public sector and inequality,” Vetten said. by the kind of work you She concluded by saying that equality and do and by childcare inequality are dynamic and that we need to think about them in complex ways in order to responsibilities and address the multiple forms that they take all motherhood. the time. - Naledi Hlefane Ongoye: July / August 2020 6 | University Launches Programme on HeforShe its Campuses to tackle them. The HeforShe team will be available to provide guidance to the institution at any given point. In her view, launching the HeforShe chapter is especially important for students as they are on the path of becoming leaders.