HSRC Integrated Annual Report 2018/2019

unemployment and poverty amongst women. On 14 August 2018, the HSRC, along with key female stakeholders and activists, hosted a public dialogue on the theme, ‘Landless women of South Africa: Expropriation of land without compensation’. The discussion was led by Minister Bathabile Dlamini, Minister of Women, and facilitated by Karabo Magagane, managing director of the Lowe Foundation. The speakers included the HSRC’s Prof. Narnia Bohler-Muller; Karabo Magagane; Adv. Karabo Kgoeadira, a legal expert and rural women representative; cultural activist, Nikiwe Bam; farmer, Nthabiseng Kgobokoe; and youth activist, Precious Banda. Discussions focused on the current challenges faced by women in accessing and owning land. One of the key objectives was to engage on the lack of property rights and how this has contributed to the exclusion of women from economic participation. The outcome of the discussions formed part of a submission to the National Assembly Portfolio Committee on Constitutional Review dealing with the land issue. Making the Road by Walking – Book Launch On 25 October 2018 the HSRC, together with Parliament’s Information Services, hosted the launch of the book Making the road by walking: The evolution of the South African Constitution , which presents eight different perspectives on how a group of formidable lawmakers changed the way justice works, and evolves, in post-apartheid South Africa. The event was attended by a number of members of Parliament and broadcast on the Parliamentary Channel. The guest speaker, Judge Albie Sachs, retired former Justice of the Constitutional Court, reminisced about themaking of a Constitution against which many countries across the world consistently benchmark their own constitutions. Judge Sachs also spoke about seminal judgments of the first bench of the Constitutional Court, appointed by former President Nelson Mandela, that changed the policy landscape of South Africa in a number of significant ways, including: the abolition of the death penalty; the provision of housing; the provision of anti-retrovirals (ARVs) to pregnant women infected with the HIV/ AIDS virus; the decriminalisation of homosexuality; and the recognition of same-sex marriages. A Blue Economy for Women’s Economic Empowerment The Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA), of which South Africa has been Chair since 2017, has committed itself to a framework of gender equality by advancing women’s economic empowerment through the Blue Economy. The sectors of the Blue Economy include fisheries and aquaculture; oil and gas; ports and shipping; and renewable energy among others, and are largely aligned with South Africa’s Operation Phakisa Lab on the Ocean Economy. Although women have played an important economic role in the Indian Ocean for generations, they face a multitude of barriers to full economic inclusion in the Blue Economy, including access to education and healthcare. Women also work lower down in value chains and are paid comparatively very little for their contributions. Based on the research and case studies, DGSD made a number of recommendations to the IORA Secretariat inMauritius that will be considered by the Ministers of Women in all 22 Member States. This project was commissioned by the United Kingdom Foreign and Commonwealth Office in October 2018. Based on the success of this project the HSRC is now working with UNWomen to update the gender equality baseline report for the Indian Ocean Region. The HSRC’s Prof. Narnia Bohler-Muller is the regional Chair of the IORA Academic Group. Banking on Africa – A BRICS Research Centre Project As an output of the HSRC-Zhejiang University memorandum of understanding (MoU) and project agreement, the BRICS Research Centre conducted a joint project with Zhejiang University’s Academy of Internet Finance (AIF), entitled ‘Banking on Africa’. The project was co-funded by the German Development Agency (GIZ). Among others, the project aims to promote financial inclusion for the poor in sub-Saharan Africa using financial technologies; identify specific characteristics of finance sectors in sub-Saharan Africa; identify the best and most suitable products and technologies for Africa; assess the obstacles to accessing technologies in Africa; and identify how sub-Saharan Africa may benefit from the Chinese experience in using technology for financial inclusion. The BRICS Research Centre conducted the research in Africa, and the AIF’s Center for Internet Finance and Innovation (CIFI) undertook research in China. The findings and recommendations of the research were presented at workshops in Cape Town, Pretoria, Nairobi and Hangzhou. These were well received, and the research report containing them is available for review and comment. PART B: PERFORMANCE OVERVIEW 18 / HSRC INTEGRATED ANNUAL REPORT 2018/19