CGE to monitor relief efforts in response to KZN and EC flood disaster

This week (from the 3rd to the 5th), Commissioners and staff members from the Commission for Gender Equality (CGE) will be visiting areas hard hit by recent floods in KwaZulu Natal and the Eastern Cape provinces, to monitor the impact on affected people and assess the state of the Temporary Disaster Relief Shelters that accommodate displaced people. The Commissioners will mostly focus on KwaZulu-Natal taking into cognisant the enormity of the damage caused by the floods.

The Commission is doing this as part of its Constitutional mandate and being empowered by the CGE Act 39 of 1996, to look at the impact of the floods on women, girls and persons with disabilities. The CGE wherein possible will also ensure coordinated response and interventions with relevant implementing agencies from the provinces and municipalities. The Commission will also collect gender disaggregated data that will be used to analyse the impact of the disaster on vulnerable groups. The overall data will form part of a report to be produced by the Commission to help in similar future incidents.

The Commission's concern is to ensure that there are no impediments to any citizen of this country, particularly through gender discrimination, when assistance is given to those mostly affected by the flood disaster. The CGE is mandated to promote, protect, and advance the rights of citizens to gender equality. The right to gender equality must be seen to manifest in all spheres of human endeavour, including the conduct of those meant to offer assistance be it from the non-governmental sector, government, political parties, etc.

The CGE's monitoring will culminate in a Monitoring Report that contains the outcome of the CGE's assessment of the impact caused by the floods through the data collected. The CGE is of the view that the outcome of its monitoring constitutes an important input towards supporting and strengthening our democracy, from a gender perspective.

Contact Person:
Javu Baloyi
Spokesperson
Cell: 083 579 3306