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Speaker of National Assembly addresses a pre-budget workshop of influential women leaders
11 February 2009
The Speaker of Parliament's National Assembly, the Honourable Gwen Mahlangu-Nkabinde today (11 February 2009) addressed the workshop of the International Women's Forum of South Africa (IWFA). IWFSA is a local chapter of an international body of highly influential and women executives in business, government, academics and non-government organisations. Amongst some of its members are Ms Hillary Clinton, the current United States (US) Secretary of State, Ms Marilyn Albright, former US Secretary of State, Ms Connie Chen, former anchor women of Cable News Network (CNN) and Ms Carol Hyatt of the Hyatt Empire. The SA chapter of IWFSA consists of distinguished women leaders such as Dr Anna Mokgokong (President – IWFSA), Dr Sebiletso Mokone-Matabane (Sentech), Ms Basetsana Khumalo (Businesswomen's Associates) and Ms Karin Louis Pickard (Pickard).
IWFSA has been meeting since 2002 just a few hours before the Budget Speech by the Minister of Finance, the Hon Trevor Manuel, to reflect on the impact of the Budget on women. From this, it then devices ways and means of improving the lives of the most marginalised women in their programmes. Among some of its achievements was the selection of twenty women with exceptional potential, from its sixty forums around the world, for a one-week leadership training course, The IWF Leadership Foundation Fellows, offered at Harvard University's John F Kennedy School of Government. In 2000, Ms Totsie Memela-Khambule was selected as a South African candidate to attend the Leadership Foundation Programme.
In her address to this gathering, the Hon Mahlangu-Nkabinde emphasised the importance of making the Budget Speech relevant to the majority of marginalised women who cannot even afford to purchase a portable radio to listen to the speech, let alone being aware that there is such a gathering which would have a direct impact on, say, the social grants they receive on behalf of needy children. This is what she said:
Being the ones endowed with some good fortune and all sorts of qualifications with nice titles such as Speaker, Doctor and CEO, the question we need to ask ourselves as we listen to the Budget Speech would be: what is it we ought to do to interpret it, in practical terms, for our less fortunate grandmothers, mothers, aunts and sisters out there so that they are able to translate it into something tangible for their lives, like putting a plate of food on the table?
For enquiries, please contact:
Mr Lebogang L Nawa
Communications Manager
Office of the Speaker
P O Box 15, Cape Town, 8000
Issued by: Parliament of South Africa
11 February 2009
Source: Parliament of South Africa (http://www.parliament.gov.za)