The Schools and Community Engagements Programme took place at the Tlamatlama Primary School in Tembisa on 26 September 2025. This initiative is part of the build-up activities towards the G20 Empowerment of Women Working Group (EWWG) Side Event scheduled for October 2025. Along with the DBE, implementing partners include the Department of Women, Youth and People with Disabilities (DWYPD), UNICEF, GIZ and the Gender Respond Fund.

The 225 learners at the main school, joined by learners from Ekurhuleni School for the Deaf, linked up with satellite schools: HF Tlou Secondary School in the North West Province; SJ Van Der Merwe Secondary School in the Limpopo Province; and Isibonelo Secondary School in the KwaZulu-Natal Province. The initiative kicked off with a short film, “Voices Against Violence” and culminated in an Intergenerational Dialogue involving learners, parents, School Governing Bodies (SGBs) and the wider community to collaboratively explore and implement sustainable solutions for positive masculinity and tackling bullying and peer pressure.

School-Related Gender-Based Violence (SRGBV) is perpetuated by harmful social norms, unequal power dynamics and weak accountability systems. According to UNICEF, one in every two children between the ages of 15 to 17 experience some form of violence globally. In South Africa, the prevalence is even higher with three in four children exposed to violence, either directly or as witnesses. SRGBV is particularly acute, perpetuated by harmful social norms, unequal power dynamics and weak accountability systems. Schools, as microcosms of society, play a critical role in shaping values, behaviour and relationships, presenting an opportunity to challenge toxic masculinities and promote positive masculinities amongst learners at an early age.

Interventions for boys aged 15 to 17, can reduce intergenerational transmission of violence and establish foundations for gender equality. Exposure to violence, whether as a victim or a witness, has profound and lasting effects on individuals, shaping attitudes, behaviour and future relationships. Children who witness domestic violence are more likely to experience emotional and behavioural problems, have difficulty forming healthy attachments, and are at a higher risk of perpetrating or experiencing violence in their own relationships later in life.

DBE’s Ms Dululu Hlatshaneni, Deputy Director from the Social Cohesion and Equity in Education Directorate, explained that “the aim of the project is to promote positive masculinities and respectful relationships amongst 15 to 17-year-old learners. The facilitation of early conversations with parents, educators and SGBs will strengthen community-led efforts in preventing GBV, whilst providing learners with a platform to co-create solutions. In addition, the initiative will also feed children’s voices into the upcoming G20 Ministerial Dialogue to ensure inclusive conversations about matters affecting SA youth. School-based activities and incidents of SGBV have been identified as key areas for targeted awareness and behaviour change initiatives. These programmes primarily engage learners through various platforms such as dialogues, film screenings, documentaries and transformative interventions aimed at dismantling harmful gender norms. The school engagement process includes school leadership to ensure long-term sustainability and to empower learners to champion positive models of masculinity within their communities”.