Minister in the Presidency for Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities Sindisiwe Chikunga. (Photo by Brenton Geach/Gallo Images via Getty Images)
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Sindisiwe Chikunga has been in her post for a few months, but she was the woman in charge when the National Council of Provinces’ select committee on social services commended her department for achieving its first clean audit and improving its performance outcomes from 81% in the 2022-23 financial year to 88% in 2023-24. The same committee was, however, concerned that programmes meant to uplift disadvantaged people and improve youth unemployment, such as establishing the Integrated Farming Value Chain Cooperatives, were not achieved, something the department attributed to budget cuts. But Chikunga can’t explain away all her failings by citing Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana’s tight grip on the national purse strings. For instance, she has taken heat for failing to use the 16 Days of Activism campaign to set up the National Council against Gender-Based Violence and Femicide, despite the Act empowering her to do so coming into force in mid-November. A Human Sciences Research Council study handed to the minister in November certainly illustrates the gravity of the problem — 33.1% of all women aged 18 years and above have been subjected to physical violence in South Africa. But kudos to Chikunga who, alongside Zulu King MisuZulu kaZwelithini, participated in a march organised by civil society against gender-based violence. The optics were certainly good.