Johannesburg – The Deputy Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, Makhotso Sotyu, has called on South Africans to join the international community in celebrating Desertification and Drought Day 2023, with this year's theme being “Her Land. Her Rights”.
Sotyu said the theme put the spotlight on women’s land rights and on the importance of placing women at the centre of achieving land degradation neutrality.
She said land provided a source of food, shelter, income, and social identity and reduced vulnerability to food and water insecurity, hunger and poverty, particularly in rural areas.
“We need to acknowledge that land remains the most fundamental asset for many to sustain their livelihoods and resilience. As the world continues to be confronted by worsening land degradation, the devastating impacts of droughts, climate change, floods, and zoonotic diseases such as Covid-19, women and the youth are the most affected and remain vulnerable. This is because progress is slow to mainstream gender issues into our programmes, projects, policies and strategies at all levels,” said Sotyu.
The deputy minister said securing women’s access to land and access to finance for land-based economic activities were central components of women’s economic empowerment, generating opportunities for economic prosperity and independence.
She also highlighted that, to date, several efforts had been made at the national level to address barriers and gaps and empower women.
These included prioritising the participation of women in projects and programmes focused on addressing drought; water crises; biodiversity loss, including wetland loss; and the development of the national strategy towards gender mainstreaming in the environment sector.
The Star