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13 - 20 August 2020

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Report shows urgent need to address gender imbalances

‘Women’s Month serves as a reminder of the urgency for closing gender imbalances in the workplace’

PwC transformation leader Anastacia Tshesane

Johannesburg - PwC Southern Africa transformation leader Anastacia Tshesane says although South African women are making great strides within the workplace, corporates have more work to do to effectively transform the boardrooms.

Tshesane says the Covid-19 pandemic has further exposed deep-rooted inequalities in social, political and economic systems, and has demonstrated the importance of the skills that women bring to societies.

“South Africa does not legally require the disclosure of gender pay gaps, but reporting on the gaps is an opportunity for companies to demonstrate tangible commitments to diversity, equality and inclusion. Development and nurturing of female talent is vital to ensure appropriate female representation at all levels. It is no surprise that companies which promote women to the highest levels of leadership tend to have more engaged boards with greater talent diversity.

Women’s Month serves as a reminder of the urgency for closing gender imbalances in the workplace,” Tshesane says.

The PwC report, titled Executive directors: Practices and remuneration trends report 2020, shows that the gender pay gap between male and female executives is wider for large-cap JSE listed companies and differs according to industry type.

Across large-cap companies the gender pay gap is most significant at 45%, with a marginal improvement at medium-cap (39%) and a 25% pay gap at the small-cap sector.

On a per industry basis, the differences in pay gaps between industries are stark, ranging from a 7% in financials to a hefty 34% in the real estate industry.

The gender pay gap, in simple terms is the difference between the average wages of men and women, regardless of their seniority. ‘Equal pay’ is a different concept but is a connected issue. Equal pay is about ensuring that there are no unjustified pay differences between employees who perform ‘work of equal value’.

Director in PwC’s people and organisation department and editor of the report, Leila Ebrahimi says there is widespread belief that to effectively improve the statistics, wider disclosure should be mandated.

“Within the reporting framework in South Africa, there is a renewed focus on transparency and improved disclosure. However, very few companies make disclosures in their integrated reports that set out the gender pay gap and the steps they are taking to close the gaps, and to make sure diversity and gender pay inequality remains a focus area,” she says.

Some countries have adopted mandatory

quotas to increase participation of women on boards. In 2008, Norway obliged listed companies to reserve at least 40% of their director seats for women or face dissolution. In the following five years, more than a dozen countries set similar quotas at 30% to 40%.

PwC’s report focuses on what factors companies should take into account when calibrating their philosophy towards executive pay. The report also looks at the feasibility of turnaround incentives, disparity of pay, the gender gap, as well as retention strategies for employers, all issues considered against the backdrop of the Covid-19 pandemic. Organisations should also take steps to identify and better understand how to attract, develop and retain female talent in order to narrow the gap.

Many companies, including PwC, have introduced training programmes on unconscious bias in an attempt to stimulate behavioural change. This speaks to the recognition that gender inequality is deep-rooted and cannot be addressed on a superficial level.

“To tackle inequality, both from an income disparity and gender pay gap perspective, companies need to bring these issues to the forefront of their strategy. Covid-19 has highlighted these often-overlooked issues and created a catalyst for change which should be embraced,” Ebrahimi adds.

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Inner-city Gazette

13 - 20 August 2020

Closing the gender divide can save lives Tech Reporter A new report from the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) and the Emergency Telecommunications Cluster (ETC), titled Women, ICT and Emergency Telecommunications: Opportunities and Constraints, highlights that equal access to information technology (ICT) can save lives in emergencies, including during pandemics.

Conversely, the digital gender divide is blocking women from becoming equal stakeholders in society, putting entire communities at greater risk during emergencies.

“In the wake of disaster, women are more vulnerable and more likely to die than men. The Covid-19 pandemic has devastating social and economic consequences for women and girls because they comprise the majority of healthcare workers, are overrepresented in the informal economy and take on most domestic work; significantly compounding pre-existing inequalities,” the report says.

It adds that women are critical partners in building disaster resilience; however, barriers limit their ability to protect themselves, and to participate in disaster decision-making.

“A woman’s ability to access accurate information has a direct impact on her own survival and disaster resilience, and also on that of the wider community,” it says.

According to the report, women are still 17% less likely to use the Internet than men, with an even wider gap in least developed countries. Women in low- and middle-income countries are also 10% less likely to own a mobile phone than men.

CEO and director of technology for the UN World Food Programme (WFP) and ETC chairperson, Enrica Porcari says access to communica-

ITU director Doreen Bogdan-Martin

tion technologies plays a central role in managing emergencies.

“It’s vital for people to receive early warnings, accurate information and humanitarian assistance or even just to contact loved ones. Leaving women out of that communication loop has a huge knock-on effect that puts millions of lives at risk,” Porcari says.

The report examines the impact of ICT for men and women in the same environments and infrastructure.

ITU Telecommunication Development Bureau director Doreen Bogdan-Martin says gender-based inequality shows up in the use of information and communication technology as well as in their design, development and launch; and crucially, in how they are used in disaster risk management says.

“Putting these technologies in the right hands can transform the way women and their communities prepare, respond or recover from disasters,” she adds.

ITU secretary-general Houlin Zhao says this report will help towards integrating women’s needs into national disaster risk reduction frameworks.

“The practices put forward aim to help ensure they get access to digital tools that can play an important role in their own safety, and that of families and communities,” Zhao says.

13 - 20 August 2020

Inner-city Gazette

Covid-19 testing in schools essential to ensure safety

Decline in Covid-19 daily admissions encouraging - dept ‘The highest number of admissions was recorded in mid-July, the highest daily new admission surpassing 320 on 16 July’ Johannesburg - The Gauteng Department of Health says it is seeing a significant drop in daily new admissions for Covid-19 in hospitals.

The highest number of admissions was recorded in mid-July, the highest daily new admission surpassing 320 on 16 July, according to the department.

As of last Friday, the province had recorded 189 159 cases, 2 524 deaths and 35 485 recoveries from Covid-19 infection.

The Gauteng Health department’s spokesperson Kwara Kekana said: “Out of a total of 91 966 contacts traced individuals who were in contact with people who tested positive for Covid-19 infection, 70 599 people completed the 10 day monitoring period with no symptoms of the corona virus infection reported and therefore are de-isolated.”

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“It is important to develop strategies that can be revised and adapted, depending on the level of viral transmission, and this requires regular testing and fast results”

Spokesperson Kwara Kekana

By that time a total of 4 749 remained hospitalised at public and private healthcare facilities.

Johannesburg continued to have the highest number of infections with 76 763, followed by Ekurhuleni with 42 304.

The department said it had signed a memorandum of understanding with private hospitals in order to regulate fees for health care, meaning hospitals would charge a standard fee per day for a patient at an agreed rate.

“It is thus a responsibility of the private hospitals to ensure continuity of supplies as the fee the department pays is inclusive. The department has the responsibility to ensure supplies in public hospitals. The number of recoveries and decline in daily new admissions is greatly encouraging,” Kekana said.

Johannesburg - There has been much discussion about the reopening and closing of schools, but conversations have been centred on learners’ access to technology and e-learning rather than the practicalities of what is needed to ensure learners and teachers stay safe.

Leviathan Viral Testing Africa CEO Gerald Naidoo says Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is as vital as testing in ensuring educators and learners stay safe. However, he points out that testing is said to be more expensive and inaccessible than PPE. “A lot of focus is on the need for social distancing and PPE in schools.

However, testing is the one sure way to ensure that we are constantly aware of what is going on at schools.

If schools had the ability to test every learner and teacher, every day, this would ensure that everyone in the education system, from parents to teachers and learners, is more confident in their ability to fight the spread of the virus,” Naidoo says.

He adds that rapid deployment of testing must be made available to support outbreaks in schools, executed in ways such as deployment of Mobile Testing Units (MTUs), temporary testing satellites and drop-off and collection routes.

“The most appropriate testing chan-

Council Speaker Nonceba Molwele with City officials during the launch of the awareness vehicle

City launches Covid-19 loud-hailing drive Johannesburg – City of Joburg departments have launched an awareness campaign to educate the public about lockdown regulations and basic guidelines to prevent the spread of Covid-19.

City of Joburg Speaker of Council Nonceba Molwele alongside the JMPD and EMS recently launched the civic education vehicle and loud-hailing awareness campaign.

Molwele said the loud-hailing vehicle will expand civic education across the city of Joburg, with the focus on sharing corona virus safety messages, especially in the densely populated areas.

She identified the need for such a vehicle

based on her own assessment and interaction with several stakeholders around the issue of community outreach, to influence behavioural change on Covid-19 while adhering to the regulations, such as social distancing.

“The programme is facilitated in collaboration with all the ward councillors. The Health and Social Development Department and Public Safety will play a critical role in the implementation of the project,” Molwele said.

The van is scheduled to conduct weekly Covid-19 and civic education programmes to educate residents around Johannesburg.

nel should be agreed among all stakeholders. The provincial and national departments of education should also roll out testing for teachers, as well as school staff who have worked at schools that have an outbreak; the tests should be repeated regularly. This will ensure that schools can contain infections, and government has a constant view of infection rates,” Naidoo says.

He adds that South African learners need to be at school, since remote schooling is mostly impossible for the poor, not to mention that 80% of the children receive publicly funded meals at schools, and for many of them it is the only nutritious meal they get every day.

“It is important to develop strategies that can be revised and adapted, depending on the level of viral transmission in the school and throughout the community, and this requires regular testing and fast results,” Naidoo says.

He adds that they have developed a three-tier system that ensures that everybody is constantly aware of their status, allowing schools to safely continue operating while also providing a proactive method of managing an effective Covid-19 response to minimise infection rates.

“Combining temperature and symptom screening with both antibody

Leviathan CEO Gerald Naidoo

and PCR testing, this system allows for constant screening to provide accurate indication of infection levels daily. This also allows authorities to have a real-time view of hot-spots and movement of the virus, and alleviate pressure on labs. With antibody testing as a surveillance tool, only individuals flagged as potentially in the first day or two of infection need to be tested using PCR, dramatically reducing the numbers of tests that need to be conducted by our overworked labs. Applying a three-tier approach to Covid-19 screening in schools will provide a solution to the calls for school closures, ensuring that the academic year can be saved,” he says.

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WHO Africa regional director Dr Matshidiso Moeti

Inner-city Gazette

13 - 20 August 2020

WHO mobilises support for African Covid-19 hotspots Johannesburg -The first members of World Health Organisation (WHO) surge team of health experts have arrived in Joburg to bolster the country’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

After their arrival, the WHO surge team went into quarantine in line with the national regulations. A second group of experts followed. More than 40 public health experts are expected to provide surge support, working with national and provincial counterparts on key areas of the response.

WHO regional director for Africa Dr Matshidiso Moeti says as the impact of the virus intensifies in a number of hotspots in Africa, so are WHO efforts.

“At the request of the South African government, our experts will be embedded with the national response

teams, working closely with local public health officials to address some of the urgent challenges the country is facing,” Moeti says.

Across the continent, the Covid-19 pandemic has taken varied trends; 10 countries accounted for 89% of new cases over the past two weeks.

New cases increased by more than 20% in 16 countries in the past two weeks compared with the previous fortnight.

WHO is increasing support to 11 countries which have requested assistance as they experience a surge in Covid-19 cases and deaths. The organization is mobilising more technical experts, scaling up trainings to build up local capacity, particularly at the provincial and district level.

Moeti says with community transmission occurring in more than half of countries in Africa, WHO is beef-

ing up community engagement and health education and providing direct material support to strengthen testing capacity.

“Lack of testing is leading to some under-reporting of Covid-19 cases and preventing us from understanding the full picture of the Covid-19 pandemic in Africa. We need to turn this around so countries can calibrate their response, ensuring it is most effective, and as cases move into the hinterlands, testing must be decentralised from the capital cities,” Moeti says.

To help meet demand for essential medical equipment across Africa, WHO and other United Nations agencies have formed a global procurement consortium which leverages their networks, expertise and product knowledge to support countries that have limited access to markets. The

Gauteng

consortium led by WHO has secured critical volumes of testing kits and other key diagnostic supplies from major manufacturers.

So far, the consortium has shipped 1.8-million testing kits to 47 countries in Africa over the past month.

Another 1.1-million testing kits are expected to be dispatched in the coming weeks.

Testing for Covid-19 in Africa remains low by global benchmarks, but capacity has expanded significantly since the outbreak began. In sub-Saharan Africa, over 6.4-million polymerase chain reaction tests have now been performed.

Eleven countries are now performing more than 100 tests per 10 000 population, compared with just six a month ago. July saw a 40% increase in the total number of tests performed compared with the previous month.

government

continues empowering women through

cooperatives, writes Sibusiso Chauke, Gauteng Social Development

Some of the community members with police officers during the awareness campaign at the Berea park.

Police conduct Covid-19 awareness drive “Some only wear face masks when they see the police. Sometimes we notice people drinking and sharing alcohol bottles, while others are seen sharing cigarettes.

It is for your own good to wear masks and adhere to the prescribed regulations” Uyapo Majahana

O

n Wednesday Hillbrow police embarked on a communication campaign to inform people about the importance of conforming to Covid-19 safety regulations.

Police spokesperson Captain Musa

Shihambe said they have noticed that some people disregard lockdown regulations that are meant to save their lives.

“Some only wear face masks when they see the police. Sometimes we notice people drinking and sharing alcohol bottles, while others

are seen sharing cigarettes. It is for your own good to wear masks and adhere to the prescribed regulations,” Shihambe said.

When the police communications team got to Berea Park, some of the people fled, thinking that the police were there to arrest them. The police announced on loudspeakers that the people should relax since they were there to talk to them.

The 30 page Covid-19 educational booklets, distributed with assistance of the police, address the importance of prevention, enlighten about sanitizing products. It also informs on ways of handling the Covid -19 illness or its symptoms.

South Africa commemorates Women’s Month in August as a tribute to more than 20 000 women who marched to the Union Building on 9 August 1956 in protest against the extension of Pass Laws to women. The Government of South Africa declared August women’s month and 9 August is celebrated annually as Women’s Day. The historic march was a turning point in the role of women in the struggle for freedom and society at large. Since that eventful day, women from all walks of life became equal partners in the struggle for a non-racial and non-sexist South Africa.

The march was coordinated by the Federation of South African Women (FEDSAW) led by four women; Lillian Ngoyi , Helen Joseph, Rahima Moosa and Sophia Williams De Bruyn. These leaders delivered petitions to the then Prime Minister JG Strijdom’s office at the Union Buildings. Women throughout the country had put their names to these petitions, indicating their anger and frustration at having their freedom of movement restricted by the hated official passes.

Women’s Month is a tribute not only to the thousands of women who marched on that day in 1956, but also to pioneers of the women’s movement in this country, dating back to 1913, when women like Charlotte Maxeke led the way in establishing the ANC Women’s League and encouraging women to engage in the struggle for freedom.

There were also women who formed the Black Sash, and who were the first to protest against the disenfranchisement of the Coloured voters during the 1950s. The Coloured voters played an important role in the united front of antiapartheid forces that developed in the last three decades of apartheid.

Government has since made significant progress in empowering women in the political, public and educational spheres, but the marginalization of poor women severely compromises progress. Gauteng Department of Social Development (GDSD) strives to empower more women through funding their cooperatives throughout the province.

The Hunger No More cooperative is one in many owned by women. That’s according to Thandi Ngcingane, one of the founding members of the sanitary pads manufacturing coorporative in Roodepoort, West Rand.

“This cooperative was started 10 years ago; we began as a non-profit organisation (NPO) that did referrals to the needy. We set up our own girl child

Sibusiso Chauke project, and GDSD then funded us.

We have created 50 jobs for abused women, social grants beneficiaries and people with disability to ensure that we eradicate poverty. Employees can provide for their families. We package dignity packs for learners throughout the province. We are grateful to the department for affording us the opportunity; we will continue to empower others especially women. We are also looking at expanding our services. We are now manufacturing cleaning detergents with the aim of creating more jobs. Our mission is to become a dignity packs hub,” said Ngcingane.

Amazebra Dignity Pack Cooperative, based in Etwatwa, Ekurhuleni, founded by a 59-year-old Gladys Ngozo has grown to employ over 75 women. “Starting a cooperative with only five members eight years ago was not an easy task,” said Ngozo.

Ngozo gathered women from her community because she saw a skills gap.

She then registered her cooperative with the department to assist with the production of dignity packs and help women in her area to generate an income for their families.

“We thank the department for helping us and many other co-ops to fight social ills that are destroying the future of our children. Through this programme, we managed to restore dignity to thousands of young girls. I remain grateful to the Gauteng Department of Social Development because through working with cooperatives, they are able to provide for many households especially women who are previously disadvantaged,” said Ngozo.

Women independency is one of the vital measures to fight social ills in society because some get trapped in abusive relationships due to poverty. Gauteng Department of Social Development will continue empowering women for the role they play in communities.

13 - 20 August 2020

Inner-city Gazette

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Teachers’ unions against school disruptions ‘Our view is that should there be a sudden change in direction of the virus, then we will have to look at things since it is all about the safety of our people’

Some GirlCode members during a recent hackathon

GirlCode appoints new advisory board Jenna Delport

GirlCode has announced the appointment of its new advisory board following their election in July.

Joining the board is Bontle Senne who leads Virgin Media’s UK transformation office; Dudu Mkhwanazi, the former Project Isizwe CEO; Neroshnee Rangasamy, technology consulting director leading Accenture Netherlands SAP Advisory Practice; Nonkululeko Tsita, deputy director of Costing at the Nelson Mandela University; Thato Mabudusha, SA territory manager at Uber Business; Venisha Nayagar, an entrepreneur managing the Information Security Company; and Philani Mdingi, digital strategy director at Maverick Mind (EMEA).

GirlCode Chairwoman, Zandile Mkhwanazi says the board members bring exceptional depth and breadth of skills, as well as global experience to GirlCode, as they embark on the next phase of transition into a social enterprise.

“We selected members that showed the passion and willingness to steer GirlCode to new heights.

The board’s expertise incorporates knowledge of non-profit, corporate business, and government sectors, a blend of skills that will benefit GirlCode immensely. We cannot wait for the team to hit the ground running. I am passionate about digital inclusion and believe my skills and expertise from my previous NPO will enable me to contribute to the expansion of GirlCode’s footprint

and funding strategies,” she says.

Mkhwanazi adds that their selections and appointment decisions were carefully thought.

“That was to allow us to further demonstrate to our partners that we do everything to ensure that we have women role models in our midst, for a women-led organisation that strives to empower the girls and women far and near,” Mkhwanazi says.

These sentiments were shared by Mabudusha, who aims to contribute to the growth of girls in Africa’s technology space.

As part of the advisory board, she indicated that she wishes to improve the number of girls who have access to technology and those who pursue technology careers.

R5 million drugs in religious ornaments seized Kempton Park - Drugs stashed inside religious ornaments weighing over 20kg, valued at an estimated R4.7 million, were recently intercepted at OR Tambo Airport, according to police.

On Sunday Colonel Athlenda Mathe said a joint operation team was following information provided by crime intelligence, which led to the detection of the drugs weighing 21.4kg hidden inside religious ornaments. The ornaments were destined

for South Africa and were from India.

Mathe said the bust resulted from a multidisciplinary security strategy involving collaboration between 10 departments and agencies at the airport. They included the SAPS, state security agency, customs, Ekurhuleni metro police, Airports Company SA security, Health Department, Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries, Department of Agriculture and the Department of International Relations and Co-operation.

“While investigations continue, authorities have brought this matter to the attention of Indian authorities and working to establish who the import agents are and establish the destination point in the country,” Mathe said.

Police appeal to anyone with information that could assist in the investigation to call 086 001 0111 or send information through the MYSAPSApp.

Men sell booze disguised as sanitiser Johannesburg – Two men were recently arrested for allegedly selling alcohol disguised as sanitiser.

Police discovered that the suspects were selling alcohol during the Covid-19 lockdown ban on the sale, and they had an unusual way to disguise the alcohol.

The two were moving liquor in containers marked ‘sanitizer’ when it was actually vodka and red and white wine. Some of the containers were branded ‘Joe Soap’.

On social media many felt sorry for the alleged perpetrators, while some wished the police would place as much interest in catching those involved in more serious crimes. @stultusruetultr said: “Should start a GoFundMe account to help pay for their legal fees.

Amazes me that law enforcement is on the ball when it comes to enforcing nonsensical regulations, but ask them to enforce laws regarding house-break-ins, murders, hijackings and GBV.....crickets.” @Misacras said: “Wow the creativity behind this probably someone snitched on them.” @bryanbrom said: “Imagine if our SAPS were as eager to catch murderers and rapists.” @FirehorseMedia said: “For once I am on these guys side... if the government can be so blatantly corrupt and criminal then let the small guys on the street make a plan!! @clivesimpkins said: “I love the ‘JoeSoap’ brand.”

For more view https://briefly.co.za/74977-joesoap-2-arrested-cops-discover-sanitiser-booze

Johannesburg – Teachers’ unions have said they are against efforts by some organisations to sabotage the academic year, but more needs to be done to ensure the safety of pupils and teachers in schools.

The Department of Basic Education recently appealed to parents and communities to protect schools against disruptions, as grade seven learners returned to schools on Tuesday.

The department said at least 38 Gauteng schools had been affected by disruptions that were orchestrated by school governing bodies and the Congress of South African Students.

National Professional Teachers’ Organisation of South Africa (Naptosa) director Basil Manuel said if the risk of infections in-

Naptosa director Basil Manuel

creases, its members would take the necessary preventative measures.

“Schools were disrupted in Gauteng, the Western Cape and Mpumalanga. Our view is that should there be a sudden change in direction of the virus, then we will have to look at things since it is all about the safety of our people,” Manuel said.

Professional Educators Union PEU) spokesperson Ben Machipi called on the department to engage organisations that threaten closures.

“We believe in negotiations and we therefore denounce the violence. It is their prerogative to ensure that they take legal action against those people disrupting schools,” Machipi said.

Man shoots wife dead Kempton Park - A man has been arrested after he shot and killed his wife on Monday morning in Birch Acres, because he thought she was an intruder, according to him.

The 33-year-old man appeared in court on Wednesday.

The deceased Hlengiwe Masango’s relatives said this was gender-based violence. Her cousin Sine Mhlongo said: “We found that she had been shot twice on the chest, and he claims he thought there was an intruder.

She was fully dressed; it seems they were having an argument, he lied to cover up the murder.”

She added that while she never witnessed any abuse, she sometimes

noticed strange behaviour from her, such as her being unavailable.

“When he called she would drop everything and return home,” she said.

The deceased is survived by a three-year-old girl and an eightmonth-old boy.

Police spokesperson Captain Mavela Masondo said the suspect claimed he fired two shots with his licenced firearm when he thought an intruder had broken into their home, then found that he had shot his wife.

The shooting reminds of the incident in which popular athlete Oscar Pistorius shot and killed his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp in Pretoria on Valentine’s Day in 2013.

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Inner-city Gazette

13 - 20 August 2020

13 - 20 August 2020

Inner-city Gazette

Don’t need a Man drama series with comedy elements

Arts organisation built on influential women’s legacy Sne Mdiya

F

or Business and Arts South Africa (BASA), every day is Women’s Day. Head of marketing and communications, Savannah Feeke-Fortune, says the organisation has been built on the shoulders of influential women, spanning more than two decades.

Feeke-Fortune explains that BASA’s founding chairperson in 1997 was Mary Oppenheimer-Slack.

“Its first CEO was Nicola Danby, who served for 10 years; succeeded

by Michelle Constant, who served for the next 10 years. Current chairperson Charmaine Soobramoney is the first woman of colour in the position.

Deputy chairperson Mandie van der Spuy is also a woman. In addition, more than 80% of staff complement and service providers are female,” Feeke-Fortune says.

She adds that a partnership has been brokered with BASA member Mamakashaka, with one of her properties, Bloom, a platform that celebrates and empowers creative women.

“In celebration of Women’s Month, Bloom and BASA will produce Season 2 of My First Mile; online content series focused on business owners, featuring female founders and leaders whose businesses are in their first 10 years,” says Feeke-Fortune.

Mamakashaka is a creative agency based in Johannesburg, which creates

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The Arts

This is a dramatic story of a woman who insists she does not need a man in her life Koketso Motlhabane

Savannah Feeke-Fortune

meaningful experiences and content for individuals, brands and communities within arts, culture and lifestyle spaces. The series will see female founders asked the same questions, to allow the audience to draw parallels among those featured, to gain appreciation of how success can follow many paths.

The project will focus on the creative sector, and also include a webinar event on 31 August. BASA’s #HeyFriend social media campaign adopts a female focus, profiling a range of women in powerful positions.

Mamakashaka CEO Nandi Dlepu says: “I am a strong believer in the power of storytelling. When we celebrate and tell the stories of successful female leaders, it inspires and gives permission to the aspirant.”

Join by tagging @bloomorg and BASA, hashtag #HeyFriend.

For more visit www.basa.co.za.

T

he unique and interesting factor in Don’t Need a Man web series is that the protagonist, Kamo, ‘breaks the fourth wall’ and speaks directly to camera.

Don’t Need a Man is a drama web series with elements of comedy on You Tube. It is light-hearted content with themes of love and relationships. This is great escape for a world that is reeling from unprecedented challenges.

The series stars Koketso Motlhabane, Didie Makobane, Mpho Sibeko, Millicent Mashile, Lethabo Bereng and Masego Thobega.

This is a dramatic story of a woman who insists she does not need a man in her life. An uptight, high end fashion designer Kamogelo Pitso, 30, who has not dated in 10 years, is convinced by her pushy friend and biggest client, Sophia, her bully of a sister Tumi, and her colourful best friend, Stoney to fi-

nally go on a date with a man.

Director Lebohang Motaung is an actor, writer and producer best known for roles such as Jabu on Rhythm City (etv), Detective Mudau on Diamond City (SABC 1) and most recently, Mayor Ramakgopa on Mzansi Magic’s Isithembiso. He directed the Caucasian Chalk Circle as his stage play directorial debut, staged at the Joburg Theatre in 2016 and 2017.

Don’t need a Man is his on-screen directorial debut. In 2016-2017 Motaung also produced an online talk show, On Set, and directed the follow up season 2 in 2019.

He notes that stories about love and relationships never get old.

“The most exciting thing about telling this one was the breaking of the fourth wall, with the protagonist, Kamo constantly addressing the camera as if speaking to her friend. The audience, young and old will be able to recognise themselves in some situations where

Q

uotable

uotes

By Prophet Philip Banda

Actor Koketso Motlhabane

they learn about themselves in the mirror of relationship. This is what we aim to achieve with this story.

Motlhabane’s theatre experience includes performances in plays The Caucasian Chalk Circle, The Talented Tenth, Agnes of God, to name a few. Her on screen appearances include Call Centre as Dikeledi, Lady in Red, as Lady in Red as well as The Queen as Doctor. She is a producer of the web series, Don’t Need a Man. Episode 6 of the drama series will be on YouTube, on 25 August.

The link to be used is https:// www.youtube.com/channel/UCGukw7rSbcWNIYL9VUbSqFw

For all your Panel Beating and Spray Painting Contact: Charles on

060 738 8851

Banyana star on Women’s Month “This is our month, but not only this one, every second of the hour, every day of the month and every month throughout the year should be dedicated to women and children. There must be no violence against women and children, don’t abuse women and children. As women and as a nation we must work hard and be disciplined, especially in these difficult times.”

Sports Reporter

B

anyana Banyana goalkeeper Andile Dlamini started playing football as a defender, and as a striker, but former Mamelodi Sundowns Ladies coach, late Brian Dube converted her to a goal minder.

Dlamini says her conversion to a goalkeeper emanated from that the regular goalkeeper often arrived late at training or matches, and the coach gave her that position.

She is among those who lead the team in prayers, and is also a singer.

“My mother is my biggest supporter; she bought my first soc-

cer boots. I played in the boys’ street teams, where I realised my abilities. I have made a difference in my family, I bought my mother land in Winterveld in Pretoria and I am building her a house. During my spare time, I coach at the JVW club in Randburg, having been introduced to this by owner Janine van Wyk. I have a SAFA D coaching licence and coach goalkeepers,” Dlamini says.

She adds that she also ventures into a music career.

“I entertain and educate in what I sing. My music is a mixture of life experiences because I am one person who loves to learn all the time,” she says.

On Women’s Month she says: “We must continue working hard as women, nothing comes on a silver platter. We are the future of any nation, mothers of the nation and we wield so much power, the future belongs to women. This is our month, but not only this one, every second of the hour, every day of the month and every month throughout the year should be dedicated to women and children. There must be no violence against women and children, don’t abuse women and children. As women and as a nation we must work hard and be disciplined, especially in these difficult times.”

Banyana ‘keeper Andile Dlamini