True inclusion demands more than token representation; it requires a fundamental overhaul of local government structures to amplify every voice, Councillor Gago Mathe, Chairperson of the South African Local Government Association (SALGA) Women’s Commission (SWC) in North-West Province, declared today while officiating at the Northern Cape SWC Lekgotla.
Speaking to hundreds of councillors, activists, and community leaders, Mathe challenged municipalities to interrogate their own practices: “Are our local structures genuinely inclusive? Do we create real pathways for women to lead? Do our development plans reflect the lived realities of the most vulnerable?”
She insisted that every Integrated Development Plan (IDP), budget line, and infrastructure project must pass a rigorous gender lens, with gender-responsive budgeting elevated from policy slogan to measurable action.
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Mathe framed gender-based violence not as an isolated social ill but as a developmental emergency that erodes community resilience. “Councils must become safe spaces where women’s perspectives shape decisions, young voices are amplified, and marginalized identities participate without fear,” she said, urging SALGA SWC members to own the gender mainstreaming mandate.
Drawing the session to a close with an African proverb, she concluded: “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” Her call to action: leave no woman behind—councillor, community worker, single mother, or aspiring young girl—and build an equitable future undeniably led by women.
