Question NW3049 to the Minister in The Presidency for Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities
09 December 2020 - NW3049
Hlengwa, Ms MD to ask the Minister in The Presidency for Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities
(1)In commemoration of World Aids Day and the 16 Days of Activism against Women and Children Abuse, and in light of the fact that young women aged 16 to 24 years are the most vulnerable to HIV/Aids infection, what programmes has her Office embarked on that will assist in decreasing the rate of HIV/Aids infection among young women; (2) Given that gender-based violence plays a major role in HIV/Aids transmission, how does her departmental programmes practically link gender-based violence initiatives to HIV/Aids prevention? NW3877E
Reply:
1. The Department’s mandate is to regulate socio-economic transformation and implementation of the empowerment and participation of women, youth and persons with disabilities. The Minister and Deputy Minister are members of the South African National Aids Council (SANAC). In terms of their role, they influenced programmatic interventions at the SANAC Inter Ministerial Commission meeting and the extended SANAC Plenary held in November 2020, in planning towards the commemoration of World Aids Day and advocated for heightened focus on young women.
2. The Director General and the CEO of SANAC met recently to discuss areas of alignment. Their focus was on how the National Strategic Plan (NSP) on Gender Based Violence and Femicide (GBVF) interlinks with the National Strategic Plan for HIV& AIDS, and key programmes to focus on collectively. These included, amongst others, services to young women as the hardest hit sector and the LGBTQIA+ community. Further, the Deputy Minster is the chairperson of the prevention pillar of the NSP. A prevention Technical Task Team on HIV&AIDS and NSP has been formed in support of this pillar. It is meant to facilitate key interventions that reflects the interlink of HIV&AIDS and GBVF. One of the focus areas is Sexual, Reproductive and Health Rights (SRHR) of young women. Workshops with relevant stakeholders in this regard are taking place.