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Tackling gender inequality and discrimination

31 July 2023 | Story Valentino Ndaba

The Gender Equality and Anti-Discrimination Office (GEADO) is an integral part of the University of the Free State’s (UFS) Unit for Institutional Change and Social Justice. Its primary focus is to create a safe and inclusive environment for students and staff. The office plays a crucial role in shaping the student experience and in fostering inclusivity in student accommodation and residence environments.

The GEADO takes proactive steps to achieve this, including implementing guidelines and policies to address and prevent gender-based violence and sexual misconduct. It also conducts conscientisation workshops to raise awareness, challenge biases, and promote empathy among stakeholders.

“As an integral component of our initiatives, the GEADO implements proactive measures to foster safe spaces for students, through the establishment of its Sexual Offence Response Team (SORT) and sexual harassment guidelines,” said Dr Lentsu Nchabeleng, Deputy Director of the Gender Equality and Anti-Discrimination Office. She further emphasised, “These frameworks are formulated to tackle and prevent occurrences of gender-based violence and sexual misconduct, ensuring a secure, healthy, and conducive environment for both students and staff to flourish and develop as individuals and as a community.” The GEADO is currently reviewing the UFS Sexual Harassment, Sexual Misconduct, and Sexual Violence Policy to strengthen its commitment to a zero-tolerance stance on gender-based violence and sexual misconduct.

Beyond addressing specific incidents, the GEADO aims to cultivate an inclusive and socially just atmosphere across the UFS’s campuses. It closely monitors the environment, identifies trends, and stays updated on global and local interventions to positively impact its work.

The office is a driving force behind fostering a safe, inclusive, and socially just campus culture that embraces gender equality and combats discrimination. It partners with LGBTIAQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, asexual, queer, and others) organisations like Free State Rainbow Seeds to further support its mission. Some of the programmes championed by the office include safety zone training, sexuality sensitisation, and diversity training.

Safe zone training

The Safe Zones@UFS project is modelled after a similar programme in the USA, specifically the Safe Zones Project at San Diego State University. Its purpose is to create a supportive and safe environment for individuals who identify as LGBTIAQ+.

Dr Nchabeleng said the project encompasses the training of faculty members and students to become Safe Zones allies, offering support to students, staff, as well as families and friends of individuals identifying as LGBTIAQ+. She emphasised that the role of Safe Zone allies involves providing assistance to LGBTIAQ+ students and staff during their coming-out process, serving as an informative resource for LGBTIAQ+ matters, advocating for LGBTIAQ+ rights, and acting as a referral point for other essential services, including medical and counselling support.

Sexuality sensitisation

Gender and sexuality sensitisation is crucial for fostering inclusive and respectful environments in educational institutions, workplaces, and communities. It involves raising awareness about consent, sexual minorities, and diverse gender identities, while addressing gender-based violence, sexual harassment, and misconduct. The approach includes consent education, understanding sexual minorities, exploring gender identities, combating gender-based violence and harassment, promoting safe spaces, challenging stereotypes, encouraging allyship, and promoting positive masculinity and femininity. Overall, these efforts create a more understanding and supportive community in which individuals of all genders and sexual orientations can thrive.

Diversity Training

The Diversity Training programme focuses on increasing awareness and understanding of diverse backgrounds and experiences. It includes workshops and training to address unconscious bias, promoting a fair and equitable environment. The goal is to create a sense of belonging, where everyone feels accepted and valued. The programme is flexible and can be customised for organisations or communities, and it can be delivered through various formats. Embracing diversity and inclusion can lead to better outcomes, improved teamwork, and the attracting of diverse talent. Overall, it fosters a culture of inclusivity and appreciation for diverse perspectives, benefitting both individuals and organisations.

Important contact information

Bloemfontein Campus: +27 51 401 3982

South Campus: +27 51 401 7544

Qwaqwa Campus: +27 58 718 5431

Toll-free number +27 80 020 4682

News Archive

Publication on indigenous knowledge systems

2005-10-21

Dr Otsile Ntsoane (acting Director: IKS, Department of Science and Technology) and Prof Philip Nel (Director: Africa Studies at the UFS and guest editor of the publication) at the launch of the publication

UFS launches most comprehensive publication on indigenous knowledge systems
A unique collection of essays on Indigenous Knowledge Systems (IKS) was launched yesterday (20 October 2005) by the University of the Free State’s (UFS) Programme of Africa Studies.

The essays are published as a special edition of INDILINGA, the African Journal for Indigenous Knowledge Systems and is an outcome of the colloquium on Indigenous Knowledge Systems that was presented last year by the UFS Director of Africa Studies in cooperation with the National Research Council.

“The amount and diversity of materials on IKS brought together under one cover is unique as there are no other South African publications of this magnitude on this issue. It contains papers of international experts on IKS such as Prof Fritz Wallner from Austria and Prof Gayatri Spivak, foremost postcolonial theorist from India,” said Prof Philip Nel, Director of Africa Studies and guest editor of the publication.

“The publication is a rich source field for students and scholars to exploit because most of the sources quoted in the articles are recent, fresh and relevant. The contributors are largely people responsible for managing, fostering and studying IKS in a responsible manner,” said Prof Nel.

“An added value of the publication is the inclusion of the policy document on IKS that was adopted by Cabinet in November 2004,” said Prof Nel.

“Millions of people in South Africa are faced with the painful choice of abandoning their heritage. In this choice, the study and management of IKS has a major role to play; on the one hand, to encourage as much assimilation of traditional knowledge as possible into the modern systems, and on the other hand to provide a “language” and a “grammar” for indigenous people through which they can access modernity,” said Prof Nel.

The IKS debate involves questions of African identity, protection of indigenous communities and practices, political aspects as well as the scientific integrity of the enterprise.

The publication displays the range of burning questions that have to be resolved in this field such as mainstreaming IKS in academic debate and practice, recognition and protection of the knowledge holders, bio-prospecting and bio-piracy, bio and ethnic healing, lack of textbooks and field manuals, etc and will prove worthwhile for future researchers.

“One of the main reasons for publishing this volume is the fact that IKS should be studied not only to provide a sense of pride in the past, or to engender respect for indigenous peoples, but also to enable people in indigenous mind sets to make a better transition into the world of science and technology,” said Prof Nel.

The guest speaker at the launch was Dr Otsile Ntsoane, acting Director of IKS at the Department of Science and Technology. In his speech Dr Ntsoane stressed the symbolic and concrete value of the publication. “The publication can have a great social impact and the research results can contribute to chancing the economic landscape of South Africa,” he said.

The publication can be purchased at R150 per copy. For more information, Ms Steffi Cawood, Programme Coordinator for Africa Studies at the UFS can be contacted at (051) 401-2614.

Media release
Issued by:Lacea Loader
Media Representative
Tel: (051) 401-2584
Cell: 083 645 2454
E-mail: loaderl.stg@mail.uovs.ac.za
21 October 2005

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