The Motsepe Foundation Centre for Gender Equality and Leadership is hosting its 4th Annual Summit on Friday in commemoration of International Women’s Day. The event is taking place in Sandton focusing on Ringing the Bell for Gender Equality under the theme Power to Influence.

The summit is aligned with the centres goal of creating an equal inclusive and sustainable world by empowering women and the youth. Some of the people attending the event include former President Kgalema Motlanthe, Congress of SA Trade Unions (Cosatu) president Zingiswa Phyllis, Minister in the Presidency for Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities Maite Nkoana-Mashabane and others.

The day kicked off with the CEO and co-founder of the Motsepe Foundation Dr Precious Moloi-Motsepe Ringing the Bell for Gender Equality at the JSE.

The summit will hold three panel discussions, the first one being; Women Leadership in Challenging Times, Women and Youth leading the 4IR and Mental Health in an Era of Uncertainty.

The aim of the summit is to empower women and youth, to promote the awareness of women in leadership and creating a world where both men and women can progress equally.

Moloi-Motsepe says gender equality is important in the workplace, “We have women who are intelligent, who are innovative and can contribute towards the competitiveness of companies, growth and development of our countries. And we need to include women in our business and politics.”

In the audio below, Moloi-Motsepe condemns gender-based violence against women and children

She also acknowledges that for countries to achieve gender equality, men and women need to walk alongside each other to close the gap.

She says it is important that girls and boys are taught at a young age to learn how to co-exist with each other.

The summit is under way and will end on Saturday, 07 March. International Women’s Day which will be celebrated on 08 March. This comes in the wake of the exposure of sexual harassment which has resulted in a number of movements such as #MeToo.

The Motsepe Foundation was established in 1999 by founder, Patrice Motsepe, and co-founder, Dr Precious Moloi-Motsepe. The Motsepe Foundation was the first family-owned organisation on the African continent to join The Giving Pledge, started by Bill Gates and Warren Buffet.