Basic Education Minister, Ms Siviwe Gwarube, attended a United Nations Girls’ Education Initiative (UNGEI), UNESCO and UNICEF Webinar on School-Related Gender-Based Violence – a must-end for equal and safe societies to strengthen prevention and response. The SRGBV Webinar, which took place on 18 March 2026, spotlighted practical solutions to turn commitment into long-lasting change.
The session launched a new Online Training Course on SRGBV, a comprehensive, evidence‑based resource packed with tools to strengthen prevention and response across education systems and provide powerful insights from adolescents, young feminist activists, multilaterals and government representatives. Participants explored real solutions, best practices, and collective commitments to make schools safe, equal, and free from GBV.
Event moderator, Ms Aya Laabadli Khallouq from Transform Education, welcomed online delegates, providing updated enrolment figures and poll results, whilst highlighting the biggest gaps that remained: “The course builds trust back into the four biggest gap options: these include financing; teacher training; building trust back into a whole-school system; and as a response mechanism for a speak-up culture and mechanism for reporting and support”.
Ms Mitsue Uemura, Head of the United Nations Girls’ Education Initiative (UNGEI) Secretariat, said: “Addressing SRGBV through a whole-school and gender-transformative approach can only be achieved through partnerships towards prevention and a coherent response agenda”. She highlighted pledges and commitments made at the Ministerial Conference on Ending Violence against Children on addressing harmful norms to enable safe school environments for all children. Mr Chris Castle, Director of the Division for Peace and Sustainable Development at UNESCO, expressed his appreciation to UNGEI, UNICEF and partners for their collaboration in advancing the global agenda to prevent and respond to SRGBV: “The scale and urgency of the challenge, in and around schools continues to affect millions of learners worldwide and undermines their right to safe, inclusive and quality education”.
An intentional conversation on School-Related Gender-Based Violence: “why is it a “must-end” for the development of just and equal societies?” was led by Mr Sylvian Séguy from UNESCO in the form of a panel discussion.
Basic Education Minister, Ms Siviwe Gwarube, said that South Africa has recently declared violence against women as a national emergency, sharing valuable takeaways from prioritising education in the early years. “Prevention starts early. As part of my 2026 Back-to-school campaign, I visited Eldorado Park Secondary School in Johannesburg, a community facing deep challenges of substance abuse, gangsterism and GBV. School safety is not a prereferral issue, it is central to learning. If we do not deal with these issues, we are compromising the learning outcomes of our learners. If violence is normalised in childhood, it follows children into adulthood. The early years of schooling should be a time of safety, dignity and possibility and learners should come to school focussed on learning, and not fear, intimidation or harm. South Africa welcomes the European Union’s commitment of €5 million towards dealing with this phenomenon in schools. My department has indicated that this intervention will be implemented in 80 primary schools across 20 communities in the KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng, Mpumalanga and Limpopo Provinces. The detailed implementation framework and final indicators are being concluded with our partners, but the direction is clear: stronger preventions, better support and more effective referral systems for learners at risk. If implemented through partnerships, involving UNICEF, UNESCO, the Foundation for Human Rights, the focus will be on the prevention of violence in schools, psychosocial support, community-level referral pathways and stronger coordination around learner protection. If we want to reduce violence at all ages, we must intervene early; we must build school environments that teach respect, that make support visible and respond quickly to harm and refuse to let violence become the norm”.
Ms Bongiwe Maome-Dikana, a South African school teacher, provided a teacher’s perspective, along with practical skills, guidance and training suggestions about what teachers require within the school environment to assist. Ms Kennecy Davidson, Guidance and Counselling, Ministry of Education and Youth, Jamaica, said that learners should be drawn into the conversation to overcome the fear of stigma and to enhance referral and feedback systems. Dr Vanmany Vannasy, from the Ministry of Education and Sports, Lao People’s Democratic Republic (PDR), agreed that governments have policies in place but require practical guidance on how to identify and respond to SRGBV to ensure inclusive and safe and supportive school environments. Girish, a 16-year-old boy learner from India shared his insights about being a UNGEI’s Feminist School participant, highlighting his views about the role of boys in its prevention and response. Iwani, a deaf girl learner from Zimbabwe, also a Feminist School participant, explained that girls with disabilities keep quiet and do not report violence. She encouraged them to speak out, attend school and not remain hidden in their communities.
After a Question and Answer session, all parties agreed that urgent intervention is required due to the cost of inaction, and encouraged all participants to access, use and disseminate the SRGBV e-course within their institutions and networks.