100-Day Challenges for leaders

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Strategic context: GBVF in South Africa

100-Day Challenges for leaders Week Minus 4 – Preparing for Engaging Leadership Stakeholders Strategic context: GBVF in South Africa

Strategic Context: GBVF in South Africa

South Africa, sadly, has a fertile ground for violence

South Africa is a deeply violent society and continues to wrestle with the impact of decades of institutionalised racism, sexism, exclusion, structural violence and other factors that have continued to undermine human development and positive social cohesion.

South Africa’s global peace index ranking resembles that of a country at war, with one of the highest murder rates found globally outside of a war zone.

The Victims of Crime Survey reports year on year reveal increased crime levels.

GBVF Pandemic in South Africa

The National Strategic Plan on GBVF was adopted in 2020 as a society-wide programme to end gender-based violence and femicide. It is organised around six pillars, which are aimed at prevention of GBV, strengthening the criminal justice response to GBV, and providing support, care and healing to survivors of gender-based violence.

The Six Pillars of the NSP

The NSP is divided into 6 pillars each with a focus area,  problem analyses, strategic principles and key deliverables. 

Click on a pillar to see more detail.
Pillar 1
Pillar 2
Pillar 3
Pillar4
Pillar5
Pillar6

The Vision of the NSP on GBVF

A South Africa free from gender-based violence directed at women, children and LGBTQIA+ persons.

The purpose of the NSP

The purpose is to provides a multi-sectoral, coherent strategic policy and programming framework to ensure a coordinated national response to the crisis of gender-based violence and femicide by the government of South Africa and the country as a whole.

Guiding principles

Multi-sectoral: To harness the roles, responsibilities & resources of all stakeholders.

Active & Meaningful Participation: Of communities, civil society & those affected by GBVF in the design & implementation #Whole SocietyApproach.

Human Rights & Survivor Centred: Approach to the provision of services that reaches all, without the risk of financial hardship.

Inclusive: Intergenerational, youth-friendly approach embracing Diversity, & Intersectionality.

Spirit of the NSP

The NSP is founded on women constitutionally entrenched right to be free from all forms of violence, also emphasised by the 24 demands delivered by the #TheTotalShutdown movement, the Declaration emerging from the 2018 Presidential Summit on GBVF.

The NSP acknowledges the equality of all genders and aims to free our society from the clutches of violence, homophobia, chauvinism and misogyny.  Inclusiveness, embracing diversity and intersectionality, recognising the importance of centring women’s experience most marginalised by poverty, race, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity and nationality.

The NSP symbolises collective accountability and responsibility, promoting an all-inclusive society approach.  

Pillar detail extracted from “Get to know your NSP” produced by the DWYPD

End GBVF Collective

The End GBVF Collective is South Africa’s biggest single volunteer network in tackling the scourge of gender-based violence and femicide.  The Collaborative platform was created as an informal and voluntary platform, open to all stakeholders involved in GBVF response in South Africa. It is undergirded by a strong Coordination and Communication structure. The collaborative platform creates space for stakeholders from government, civil society, development agencies, and private citizens to think and plan together. Participants find expression of their interests and skills by joining one or more of the six pillars. 

Pillar Teams focus on the implementation of priority interventions of the NSP whilst the Coordination and Communication Teams serve as venues for the work of the Pillars and the collaborative as a whole.  Pillar team members also attend monthly Collaborative meetings which bring together all Pillars to facilitate mutual learning and collaboration.

Join the End GBVF Collaborative Whatsapp community and become part of a Pillar team and the Movement to End GBVF.

Join the WhatsApp Community
Click to test your knowledge on the NSP

The self-assessment will open in a new page.

More information

Full version of the NSP 

Summary version of the NSP 

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Thought starter reflection questions

Jot down thoughts on these questions – to the extent they are relevant to your experience at the session:
  • When did the mood in the event shift from “why are we here?” to “this could be interesting – I am excited to be part of this.” What triggered this shift? 
  • When did you have to go “off script” on the agenda or to change the agenda? What triggered this? What did you adjust? How did it go?
  • What was most surprising to you at the event?
  • What new insights did you gain about the issue at hand, and about the way leaders in the system interacted with each other?
  • Where did the conversation get stuck? What got it unstuck?
  • How would you characterise the level of trust among participants in the meeting? To what extent did this shift as the meeting progressed? To what do you attribute this shift, if indeed it happened?

Thought starter...

Reflection Questions 

Jot down thoughts on these questions – to the extent they are relevant to your experience at the session:

  • When did the mood in the event shift from “why are we here?” to “this could be interesting – I am excited to be part of this.” What triggered this shift? 
  • When did you have to go “off script” on the agenda or to change the agenda? What triggered this? What did you adjust? How did it go?
  • What was most surprising to you at the event?
  • What new insights did you gain about the issue at hand, and about the way leaders in the system interacted with each other?
  • Where did the conversation get stuck? What got it unstuck?
These are 100-Day Challenge Mentors. 

They did some work before you received the Challenge Note. This included:

  • Writing the Challenge Note, and making sure that the leaders of all the organisations represented on the team are comfortable with it – and committed to supporting the work of the team
  • Helping the leaders of these organisation recruit you and your colleagues to the team
  • Gathering some baseline data and other information that will help you and your teammates set your 100-Day goal and develop your plan.
  • Making sure all the preparations are made for a successful Lift-Off workshop, when you and your teammates will meet and get your 100-Day Challenge started. This includes venue, facilitation support, food, swags, comms, travel arrangements and whatever else is needed.

 

Mentors will participate in all or part of the Lift-Off Workshop, mostly at the start to provide context and answer questions, and at the end to give you and your teammates feedback about the goal and plan you develop.

During the 100 days following the Lift-Off Workshop, here’s what the Mentors will do:  

  • They will check in every two weeks with the team leaders to see how the team is doing and what support they and the team need.
  • They will keep other organisational leaders informed and engaged during the 100 days, and pull them in to help as needed.
  • They will participate in the last part of the Refuelling Workshop, halfway through the 100 days, to see what additional support the team needs, and to begin to plan with the team for sustainability and scale-up.
  • They will work with the team at the Sustainability Workshop to finalise recommendations on sustaining the results and building on the work of the team.