Empowering Women in South Africa to Challenge and Change Harmful Practices and Beliefs around Gender through Workshops, Capacitation, and Community Mobilisation

Implemented over nine months, the project engaged three cohorts of women in a structured series of four-day GBV workshops, followed by six weekly capacity-building sessions for newly formed community action groups. These groups then planned and executed community-led outreach events to raise awareness and connect victims to essential support services. The project addressed socio-economic barriers by providing on-site childcare during sessions and adapted through strong community ownership — including participants independently securing a venue at a Department of Social Development facility. 44 direct beneficiaries (women workshop participants) and 885indirect beneficiaries (community members reached through outreach events) were reached by the project. The project fostered deep community ownership, with participants becoming active ‘agents of change’ who now independently refer neighbours to legal and counselling services. One notable success was a participant personally accompanying a community member to the LvA Centre to apply for a protection order. The community action groups formed through the project continue to operate independently, serving as a lasting legacy of the intervention.