Minister of Basic Education, Ms Siviwe Gwarube, in partnership with the FirstRand Foundation, hosted a Women’s Month Inter-Generational High Tea event aimed at promoting women leadership and holistic development of young women across various sectors of the society in South Africa. The event brought together a diverse group of women, including learners, young professionals, teachers, and established leaders in business and public service, within a unique intergenerational space designed to promote unity, reflection, inspiration, and empowerment. The Inter-Generational High Tea took place at The Garden Venue in Randburg in the Gauteng Province on 16 August 2025.
The event, organised in line with the 2025 Women’s Month Commemoration, was a critical platform for women in education to share a common goal in terms of empowering girl learners throughout the South African schooling system. South African Auditor-General, Ms Tsakani Maluleke, Ms Kone Gugushe, Head of Social Investing, FirstRand Group, and Mrs Thokozile Didiza, the Speaker of the National Assembly, joined Minister Gwarube at the event. Various leaders spoke against the recurrent incidents relating to the Gender-Based Violence (GBV) against Women and Children, calling for harsher sentences against perpetrators.
In her address, Auditor-General Maluleke said that women needed to be empowered and supported to climb ladders of leadership both in Government and the private sector. “One of the greatest gifts we can give young people is to help them believe in their worth—that they can be just as good as anyone else. This is why I seize opportunities to engage with young people, reminding them of their potential and helping them realise their ambitions. As the AGSA, we have also taken on the task of contributing to the pipeline of auditors by training young people to become Chartered Accountants (CAs). To date, we have contributed over 2,000 CAs to the profession, many of whom are now making contributions within AGSA, the public sector, the private sector, and internationally,” remarked Auditor-General Maluleke.
Speaking during the High Tea, Minister Gwarube reminded those who attended the event that education was the ladder that lifts girls out of poverty. “Education is not just about books and classrooms, it is about giving women agency, and the freedom that comes with being a professional, and with that you give women back their dignity. It is also about giving a girl the tools to write her own story, no matter where she is born. Whether she grows up in Lusikisiki or Langebaan, Soweto or Sandton, Midrand or indeed KwaMdingi like myself, every girl deserves the same key that unlocked my life, to access quality education and rise to the level of our ambitions and not fall to the circumstances of our birth. When we gather like this, women and girls from different generations, each carrying our own stories of struggle, triumph, heartbreak, and hope, we are not just sharing tea and conversation. We are building a bridge across time, a bridge that carries the lessons of the past, the battles fought by those before us, and the dreams of those still to come," she added.
“To the young girls in this room, your dreams are valid. Your voice matters. Your future is worth fighting for. To the women here who have walked before us, thank you for breaking the ground we now stand on. We promise to honour your sacrifices not with words alone, but with action. To the women here, let us walk this road together, with education as our ladder. Because when we lift a girl, we lift a nation,” concluded Minister Gwarube