SOUTH AFRICA
South Africa’s first and current NAP covers the period 2020-2025.
Objectives of the 2020-2025 NAP:
1 To promote, protect and respect an inclusive, safe and peaceful society by operationalising the WPS Agenda in South Africa.
2 To implement, evaluate and report on agreed upon WPS frameworks at international, continental and regional levels.
3 To ensure the full and meaningful participation of women in peace and security processes, structures and institutions at all levels.
4 To establish and implement effective conflict management institutions, systems and processes.
5 To prevent violence against women, girls and gender non-conforming persons and protect them in all situations.
6 To position and promote South Africa as a credible international leader on issues related to WPS.
7 To ensure an integrated and coordinated approach to, and the utilisation of best practices towards information and knowledge management for WPS.
Commentary:
South Africa has focused extensively on protecting women and girls from SGBV in recent years. In 2018, the country was swept by nationwide anti-GBV protests – known as the #TotalShutdown protests – prompting a Presidential Summit on Gender-Based Violence and Femicide. Later, in 2020, Interpol labelled South Africa the “rape capital” of the world – one in three women have been, or will be, raped in the country. That same year, President Cyril Ramaphosa identified rape to be a pandemic second only to Covid-19. In November 2022, the country held its second presidential summit, with the theme Accountability. Acceleration and Amplification, NOW!
Civil society involvement in development of the NAP:
The NAP was a joint collaboration between the government and civil society, with civil society mentioned 93 times in the text of the NAP. Dialogues were held with civil society organisations, key civil society leaders were on the working group which assembled the NAP, and a wide variety of NGOs were consulted.
UN peacekeeping statistics:
At September 2023, South Africa was contributing 1171 personnel to UN peacekeeping missions, of which 199 were women. All of the military postings (Troops and Staff Officers), and the three Experts were deployed with MONUSCO (UN Organization Stabilization Mission in the DR Congo); 23 of the police were all deployed with UNMISS (UN Mission in South Sudan), and the remaining 2 police with UNISFA (UN Interim Security Force for Abyei*). Interestingly women are particularly strongly represented among the police and expert positions.
Women in peacekeeping:
The NAP openly discusses the increased inclusion of women in the national security structure, identifying the following tasks:
“Government to appoint more women to senior positions in the security cluster, including at ministerial and DG levels and in security sector institutions (police, defence, corrections, intelligence, home affairs, justice).”
“Departments to institute measures to ensure an environment in which women are able to thrive in security sector institutions.” “Government and civil society to train and deploy women in conflict prevention, relief and recovery and post-conflict reconstruction.”
References and sources:
South Africa WPS NAP 2020-2025: NAP WPS1rev6 (www.gov.za)
Commentary section:
Interpol: presentation.pdf (tears.co.za)
S.Africa battles 'second pandemic' of rape and abuse | Africanews: S.Africa battles 'second pandemic' of rape and abuse | Africanews
President Cyril Ramaphosa hosts second Presidential Summit on Gender-based Violence and Femicide, 1 to 2 Nov President Cyril Ramaphosa hosts second Presidential Summit on Gender-based Violence and Femicide, 1 to 2 Nov | South African Government (www.gov.za)
Statistics section:
United Nations Peacekeeping (Sept 2023) https://peacekeeping.un.org/en/troop-and-police-contributors
Contribution of Uniformed Personnel to UN by Country, Mission, and Personnel Type (Sept 2023): https://peacekeeping.un.org/sites/default/files/05_missions_detailed_by_country_66_september_2023.pdf
*Abyei is the disputed area which straddles Northern and Southern Sudan.
