The murders of nine women on the East Rand have prompted a beneficiary of one of Nelson Mandela Bay’s most popular road races to launch a new gender-based violence (GBV) prevention programme in rural high schools.
Ripples for Change, which runs programmes aimed at unlocking potential in these communities, will use its R50,000 windfall from the SPAR Women’s Challenge in Gqeberha on September 26 to initiate the project.
Organisation founder Galit Cohen explained the project would involve teenage girls at the schools it supports learning Krav Maga self-defence techniques.
The offering includes safety and dignity packs with emergency numbers, a whistle and reusable sanitary pads.
The boys, meanwhile, will explore what it means to be men in their generation, while also learning about healthy masculinity, respect and why violence against girls is never acceptable.
Fathers Matter, an organisation that promotes the positive, active presence of men in children’s lives, has been tasked with rolling it out.
The country has been rocked by the killings of at least nine women east of Johannesburg in the past two months.
Several have been found partially clothed and with injuries.
Police have indicated they have not established whether the deaths are connected or whether a serial killer is on the loose.
“We all know the devastating statistics around GBV in SA, but the recent murders in the East Rand have put real faces and lives behind those statistics and reminded us of the urgent need to act,” Cohen said.
“Our team is made up of proactive women and we felt we could not simply stand by.
“We wanted to do something meaningful in memory of the women who lost their lives.”
The organisation believes the scourge of GBV needs to be addressed from “both sides”, empowering girls with practical tools while making boys part of the solution.
Cohen said Ripples for Change also wanted to support SPAR’s commitment to addressing GBV across SA.
SPAR Eastern Cape sponsorship manager Honey Koba said the race beneficiary’s proactive response in the wake of the murders was incredible.
“We all know the devastating impact of GBV. We are all shaken by what is happening right now,” she said.
She said women’s empowerment and the eradication of GBV were among SPAR’s key pillars.
“We believe preventing all of what we’re seeing will start with educating people.”
Aside from praising the self-defence aspect for girls, she also commended the nonprofit for including teenage boys in efforts to help curb the cycle of violence in South African communities.
“We are truly proud that funds raised through our race will support such an impactful programme.
“We are committed to supporting initiatives that make the country safer for our women and our children.”
Cohen appealed to other organisations to donate towards the packs for the girls and boys.
Ripples for Change, whose entire team comprises women, runs programmes across early-childhood development (ECD) centres, food security, child and youth projects and beekeeping.
It has a significant presence in the Eastern Cape, where it supports 212 ECD centres in Tsholomnqa, Mooiplaas, Dimbaza, Stutterheim, Keiskammahoek and Newlands.
It has also developed a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) centre at Walter Sisulu University in partnership with STEMpower.
In addition, it has beekeeping sites at Qolora, Zithulele and Mooiplaas, where the local community is trained to maintain hives and sell honey.
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