Pretoria - Communications Minister Faith Muthambi is expected to attend the International Development Cooperation meeting on Gender and Media taking place in Geneva, Switzerland.
The meeting, which is scheduled for 7 to 10 December, will give impetus to all stakeholders to work together to achieve gender equality and empowerment of women in and through media, including online platforms.
Minister Muthambi will give an opening statement and chair panel discussions on issues of gender and media at the conference.
According to the 2011 ITU and UNESCO-led Broadband Commission Report, there are 200 million less women on the Internet than men. The percentage is even more worrying in regions such as Africa and Asia.
“While our country has done a lot on gender equality and representation of women in the media, more can still be done in an effort to create social balance,” said Minister Muthambi.
South Africa participated in The United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women, and signed the Beijing Declaration and Platform of Action the same year and committed to undertake a comprehensive national review of the progress made and challenges encountered in implementing the Platform of Action for the achievement of gender equality and empowerment of Women.
“Women empowerment is critical for NDP implementation,” added Minister Muthambi. –SAnews.gov.za
