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More than 30 years ago, SA took its bold first steps into democracy. It was a moment of unprecedented hope – not just for political freedom but for the transformation of society in all its dimensions. As the country reflects on passing its three-decade milestone, it’s an opportune time to assess the progress made by women in science, technology and innovation (STI).
While the road has been uneven, the strides that have been made are undeniable. This year marks 30 years since the adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, a global agenda for advancing women’s rights, which includes their access to education, technology and leadership.
As we reflect on 30 years of global gender advocacy since the Beijing resolution, we must shift our efforts from a focus on participation to a demand for leadership. Women should not only be present in science – they must shape its direction. That means ensuring that women lead laboratories, policy development, global scientific collaborations, and research and training institutions. It also means rethinking how we define innovation – more value needs to be placed on community-based knowledge, indigenous science and interdisciplinary approaches that centre on people, not just products.
To understand how far we’ve come, we must begin with a pivotal moment in our country’s history: the Women’s March to the Union Buildings on August 9 1956, when more than 20,000 women of all races and backgrounds marched peacefully against apartheid’s pass laws. They stood united in defiance of an oppressive system, carrying petitions and chanting: “Wathint’ Abafazi, Wathint’ Imbokodo!” (You strike a woman, you strike a rock).
That historic act of resistance was not just about civil liberties – it was a declaration of women’s power to shape SA’s future.
Fast-forward to today, and that same spirit continues to drive South African women, not just in politics or activism, but in laboratories, tech hubs, industry and innovation spaces. In many ways, the progress of women in STI is one of the quiet revolutions of our democratic era, largely influenced by our policy frameworks that support women in this sector.
The National Development Plan 2030, the department of science and innovation’s white paper on science, technology and innovation, and the more recent Decadal Plan, advocate for gender transformation and gender-responsive planning as national priorities. Yet, structural inequalities persist. Women – especially women of colour – remain underrepresented in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) leadership roles, with a national representation of a mere 30% of the workforce.
Barriers such as unequal access to quality education, limited mentorship opportunities, and gender bias in academia and industry continue to constrain progress.
One of the most effective ways to empower women in STI is through mentorship. Access to mentors helps young women navigate the complex terrain of academia, research and industry, especially in male-dominated environments, such as mining and engineering-related fields. It builds confidence, opens doors and fosters a sense of belonging.
Science outreach efforts in rural and township schools, particularly those that bring in female scientists from similar backgrounds as role models, can have a transformative impact. When girls see someone who looks like them succeeding in science, it fundamentally shifts what they believe is possible.
Embedding targeted programmes that focus on raising awareness of the rights of women and girls into school or university curricula can help address some of the societal ills that disproportionately affect girls and women. These include cyberbullying, gender-based violence, exploitive relationships – such as those that involve “sugar daddies” – and reproductive health and teenage pregnancies, among others.
This calls for politicians, governments, higher education leaders, schools and communities to work together to co-create and co-develop inclusive innovation strategies for accelerated change.
The women who marched to the Union Buildings in 1956 were not just resisting oppression; they were demanding a future in which their daughters and granddaughters could be free to learn, lead and innovate. That dream is still being realised, in university labs, coding boot camps, data science hubs and tech start-ups. But our work is far from done. We must shift from symbolic inclusion to structural transformation: more women in leadership, more equitable funding, more inclusive curricula and sustained support from childhood through to the career stage.
The rocks that built this nation must now become the architects of its innovation future. Let us honour their legacy not just with words, but with policies, platforms and partnerships that ensure every girl – from the village to varsity – can rise, lead and transform the world.
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