Report
of the Multi-Party Women’s Caucus on its activities undertaken during the 4th
Parliament (May 2009 – March 2014)
Key highlights
1.
Overview
of Multi-Party Women’s Caucus
In
the period between 2009 and 2010, whiles under National Assembly Tables, MPWC
championed the fight of Ukuthwala in collaboration with the Department of
Women, Children and Persons with Disabilities and the Department of Justice. After
the re-launch of Multi-Party Women’s Caucus (MPWC) in 2011, it was provided
with resources which include an operating budget, and a secretariat comprising
a Committee Secretary, Executive Secretary and a researcher. As a funded, fully-functional
committee under Committees Section, the MPWC was allocated a dedicated timeslot
i.e. between 12:30 and 14:30 on Wednesdays. Both the MPWC and its steering
committee met twice a month. The knowledge and skills gained enable Members to
carry out their parliamentary duties such as legislative drafting, oversight
and facilitating public participation from a gendered perspective. The MPWC
must ensure that women are not only represented within Parliament, but that
they have access to real decision-making influence. In mainstreaming gender issues
the Caucus consults with relevant Portfolio and Select Committees on
legislation and oversight obligations that could have an impact on women’s
lives.
2.
Focus
areas over the period under review
In the period between 2009
to 2014, the MPWC focused on developing a program that would ensure the
representation of the views and interests of women members of Parliament; the
introduction of a gendered perspective to parliamentary activities through gender-focussed
training and development activities; the building of networks with other
women-focused formations in provincial legislatures, government departments and
civil society organisations; close cooperation with the Portfolio and Select committees
on Women, Children and Persons with Disabilities; and the mainstreaming of
Millennium Development Goals.
3.
Key
areas for future work
3.1 The
MPWC should proceed with evaluating the implementation of MDGs within provinces
so as to ascertain whether South Africa would be able to meet 2015 goals.
3.2 The
MPWC should launch MPWCs in those provinces and district municipalities that
have not yet established such structures.
3.3 The
MPWC should ensure that plans and programmes for the Women’s Parliament are
programme-based and not events-based; and
3.4 Women’s
Day should not be a celebration for one day, but rather a developmental
programme spanning the entire term of the 5th Parliament.
4.
Key
challenges emerging
4.1 The limited budget allocated to the MPWC had resulted in it
not meeting all its objectives.
4.2 The limited time allocated to the MPWC impacted on the
reaching of objectives.
4.3 The fact that the MPWC was not able to undertake a study tour
impacted on its activities and establishment.
4.4 Non-active participation of members of Parliament further
impacted on the robustness of debates and discussions.
5.
Recommendations
5.1 The MPWC should facilitate the establishment of Provincial
and District Caucuses taking into consideration provincial context.
5.2 The MPWC should prioritise facilitating continued engagements
around climate change.
5.3 Priority should be given to capacitating members as far as
gender mainstreaming, gender tools and gender budgeting.
5.4 Closer ties should be
established with relevant committees, especially the Portfolio and Select
Committees on Women, Children and Persons with Disabilities, as the partnership
will ensure coordinated efforts towards empowering not ordinary women, but also
women Members of Parliament tasked with representing their interests.
·
5.5 The MPWC’s
programme should be aligned with the Parliamentary programme. This would
require engagement with the programming committee and the Office of House
Chairperson: Committees and ICT.
1.
Introduction
1.1
Department/s
and Entities falling within the committee’s portfolio
MPWC neither have departments nor entities
falling within it but it worked with some Institutions Supporting Democracy,
Civil Societies, South African Local Government Association (SALGA), Progressive
Women of South Africa, Commission on Gender Equality, Human’s Rights
Commission, Human Science Research Council, Heinrich Boll, Mosaic, Sisters
Incorporated, Triangle Project, Sex Workers Education and Advocacy Taskforce
(SWEAT).
1.2
Functions
of Multi-Party Women’s Caucus (MPWC):
The MPWC
mandate is derived from Joint Rule 137 of Parliament, which states that the
Multi Party Women’s Caucus acts as an advisory, influencing and consultative
body by:
·
representing the interests and concerns of women Members of
Parliament;
·
promoting the discussion of women’s issues in
Parliament;
·
making submissions to the relevant
committees;
·
introducing a women’s perspective and focus in
Parliamentary activities, including in the programming of debates; and
·
engaging on developmental and empowerment issues
with women in political structures
outside Parliament and women Members
of Parliaments Internationally; and considering any other matter within
its mandate referred to it by either House.
1.3
Method
of work
1.3.1 The MPWC comprises all women Members of
Parliament, from all parties, in both Houses of Parliament. It has both a
Chairperson and Deputy Chairperson, who are elected by the Caucus at the
beginning of the Parliamentary term. Given that over 40% of Parliamentary seats
are held by women (which translates to about 166 Members of the Caucus), it was
deemed necessary to establish a Steering Committee to provide strategic
guidance to the work of the committee.
1.3.2 The steering committee is also a multi-party
committee, and it took a decision of including the chairpersons of both the
Portfolio and Select Committees on Women, Youth, Children and People with
Disabilities. As a funded, functional committee, the Caucus is allocated a
timeslot to meet twice a month. Steering committee meetings take place in the
weeks that the Caucus does not sit.
1.4
Purpose
of the report
1.4.1 The purpose of this report is to provide an account of the MPWC work
during the 4th Parliament and to inform the members of the new
Parliament of key outstanding issues pertaining to the strategic plan of the
caucus and its collaborators.
1.4.2 This report provides an overview of the activities the committee
undertook during the 4th Parliament, the outcome of key activities,
as well as any challenges that emerged during the period under review and
issues that should be considered for follow up during the 5th
Parliament. It summarises the key issues for follow-up and concludes with
recommendations to strengthen future operational processes.
2.
Key
statistics
The
table below provides an overview of the number of meetings and workshops
conducted by MPWC during the 4th Parliament:
Activity |
2009/10 |
2010/11 |
2011/12 |
2012/13 |
2013/14 |
Total |
Meetings & workshops held |
|
|
10 |
8 |
6 |
24 |
3.
Stakeholders
None
4.
Briefings
and/or public hearings
None
5.
Legislation
(None)
None – the MPWC does not process legislation.
6.
Workshops/Conferences
undertaken
The following workshops and
conferences were attended:
Date |
Place of
event |
Objectives |
Analysis |
29 June 2011 |
Parliament in Cape Town |
To train members on Millennium Development Goals. |
To enrich and enhance understanding of MDGs by
female members of Parliament and members of Provincial Legislatures. |
31 July to 03 August 2011 |
Birchwood Hotel Boksburg, Gauteng |
To participate in the First National Women’s Conference
hosted by the Ministry for Women, Children and Persons with Disabilities. |
Addressing the voices of women in the key national
priority for women and girls through: economic empowerment, job creation,
decent work and sustainable livelihoods; education for girls and women;
health for girls and women; rural development, food security and land reform
for women and girls; fighting gender based violence. |
19 October 2011 |
Goodhope Chambers in Parliament of South Africa. |
To acquaint members with the information on climate
change and to introduce a gendered perspective. |
To
address gender perspective of climate and impact towards women as vulnerable
group. To equip members with means and tools for mitigation
and adaptation. |
10
– 12 July 2011 |
Eastern
Cape, Lusikisiki. |
1.
To deliberate and interact with civil societies on challenges and
achievements on MDGs 2. Develop recommendations in achieving these MDGs. |
A
comprehensive understanding of state of affairs with regard to MDGs at local
and provincial levels. |
19
– 21 July 2011 |
Limpopo: Polokwane & Thohoyandou |
1.
To deliberate and interact with civil societies on challenges and
achievements on MDGs 2. Develop recommendations in achieving these MDGs. |
A
comprehensive understanding of state of affairs with regard to MDGs at local
and provincial levels. |
16
February 2012 |
Parliament |
The
breakfast event was hosted in honour of women veterans and in an effort to
recognise and appreciate the meaningful and pivotal role these women played
during the struggle for South Africa’s freedom. |
It
sought to assure women veterans that women Parliamentarians were still
committed to advancing the empowerment and emancipation of women in society. |
5
– 8 July 2012 |
South Africa, Eastern Cape Province, Umthatha at
Walter Sisulu University |
To
participate in the 2nd National Conference of Progressive Women
Movement of South Africa. |
In
improving the quality of life of women especially in the rural areas, the
establishment of PWMSA structures will drive programmes of: -skills
development, -promoting
the growth of cooperatives, -mediation
for peace in communities, and -stemming
the tide of gender-based violence in communities. |
11
March 2013 |
West Rand District Municipality |
To launch West Rand District Municipality Multi-Party Women’s
Caucus |
To
mainstream gender. |
18
March 2013 |
Eastern Cape, Amahlathi District Municipality |
To
launch Amahlathi District Municipality Multi-Party Women’s Caucus |
To
mainstream gender. |
22
April 2013 |
Parliament |
The National Roundtable On Multi-Sectoral Interventions
and Actions on Gender-Based Violence |
Members engaged with stakeholders and civil society on
the implementation of legislative provisions, gaps in the legislation that
need to be addressed, as well as mechanisms for effectively overseeing
actions and interventions aimed at ending gender-based violence. |
20
-21 August 2013 |
Parliament |
Women’s Parliament objectives
were: -To build an effective people’s
Parliament that is responsive to the needs of the people and that is driven
by the ideal of realising a better quality of life for all the people of
South Africa -To provide a vehicle for
women’s voices to be heard on issues affecting them -To identify the challenges
women face and to assist them in addressing those challenges |
The
2013 Women’s Parliament will provide an ideal opportunity to look back at all
the Women’s Parliaments that have taken place during the period of the 4th
democratic Parliament and will focus on discussing issues related to Gender
Based Violence. It
will give an opportunity for women to reflect and look at progress made
towards women empowerment and also to pave the way forward to the next term. |
Challenges emerging
No challenges were encountered during
conference time.
a)
Issues
for follow-up
The 5th
Parliament should consider following up on the following concerns that arose:
- cascading the undertakings of MDGs to Provinces;
- launching MPWCs in all provinces and district
municipalities;
- ensuring that the approach towards programmes and
planning for the Women’s Parliament is programme-based and not events-based;
and
- ensuring that Women’s Day should not be a
celebration for one day, but a developmental programme spanning the term of the
5th Parliament.
7.
Study
tours undertaken
None
8.
International
Agreements
None
9.
Statutory
appointments
None
10.
Interventions
None
11.
Petitions
None
12.
Obligations
conferred on committee by legislation:
None
13.
Summary
of outstanding issues relating to the civil societies that the MPWC has been working
with
The following
key issues are outstanding from the committee’s activities during the 4th
Parliament:
Responsibility |
Issue(s) |
Establishment of Provincial Caucuses |
The MPWC should facilitate the establishment of
Provincial and District Caucuses. The mandates, programmes, and focus of the
MPWC must ensure that provincial context is taken into account. |
Focused Programming and Follow-up |
In
addition to continuing with the assessment of the attainment of the MDGs,
MPWC should also prioritise facilitating continued engagements around climate
change. The capacitating of Members should also take high priority,
especially on gender tools, including mainstreaming and budgeting. |
Coordination |
Internally,
the Caucus should persist in forming closer ties with relevant committees,
especially the Portfolio and Select Committees on Women, Youth, Children, and
People with Disabilities. These partnerships will ensure coordinated efforts
towards empowering not only ordinary women, but also the women Members of
Parliament tasked with representing their interests. |
Planning |
In
ensuring the adequate engagement on gender issues by all Committees of
Parliament, the MPWC should be clear on its strategic, operational, and
political priorities for the 5th term. The scheduling of Committee
work must take into consideration the membership of MPWC Members to other
committees. Through the appropriate alignment of the MPWC programme with the
Parliamentary programme, and the effective engagement with the programming
committee and the Office of the House Chairperson for Committees, the MPWC
can ensure that scheduling issues are dealt with conclusively. |
14.
Recommendations
14.1 The
MPWC should facilitate the establishment of Provincial and District Caucuses.
The mandates, programmes, and focus of the MPWC must ensure that provincial
context is taken into account.
14.2 The MPWC should also prioritise
facilitating continued engagements around climate change. Capacitating Members
should also take high priority, especially on gender tools, including
mainstreaming and budgeting.
14.3 The Caucus should persist in forming
closer ties with relevant committees, especially the Portfolio and Select
Committees on Women, Youth, Children, and People with Disabilities. These
partnerships will ensure coordinated efforts towards empowering not only
ordinary women, but also the women Members of Parliament tasked with
representing their interests.
14.4 Through
the appropriate alignment of the MPWC programme with the Parliamentary
programme, and the effective engagement with the programming committee and the
Office of the House Chairperson for Committees, the MPWC would ensure that
scheduling issues are dealt with conclusively.
15.
Committee
strategic plan
STRATEGIC OBJECTIVES OF PARLIAMENT |
FUNCTIONS |
PROGRAMME FOCUS |
To Strengthen the oversight function and establish a
strong culture of overseeing executive function |
Represent
the interests and concerns of women Members of Parliament |
-Identify
the interests of women MPs in Parliament -
Develop a Gender Policy -
Establish a Capacity building Programme |
Introducing
a women’s perspective and focus in Parliamentary activities including in the
programming of debates |
-
Develop and implement a gender mainstreaming strategy within Parliament |
|
To increase public involvement and participation and
build a responsive people’s Parliament |
Promoting
the discussion of women’s issues in Parliament |
-Round-table
discussions on gendered matters of national interests -Maintain
networks of relevant civil society organisations |
To strengthen co-operative government and foster improved
cooperation and relations |
Making
submissions to the relevant committee on issues affecting women |
-Identify
issues of concern which concern legislation |
To Improve and widen the role of Parliament in
international cooperation and participation |
Engaging
on developmental and empowerment issues with women in political structures
outside Parliament and women Members of Parliaments internationally |
-
Maintain a network of regional, continental and international political
stakeholders within the area of gender -
Engage regional, continental and international political stakeholders on
platforms provided -
Legislative Role in Achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) |