Donating to SPU |   053 491 0000 |   [email protected] |   Vacancies View current jobs |   Employee Portal

Women’s month: Views from our staff and students

Women’s Day is an important reminder of the powerful display of unity in 1965 when mothers, daughters, wives, sisters, and friends united in solidarity to stand up for justice, equal opportunity and human rights.

This Women’s month, Sol Plaatje University (SPU) paid tribute to the generations of women whose resilience and sacrifices contributed to the creation of a democratic South Africa by hosting a virtual public lecture under the theme Generation Equality: Realizing Women’s Rights for an Equal Future. Following this, the Communication and Marketing Unit invited staff and students to share their views about the importance of women in our South African history. This is what the #MySPU community had to say:

Eli Nimy

Eli Nimy, BSc Honours in Data Science student

Question: What is your women’s day message?

Answer: To me, Women’s Day is about celebrating women. They are impeccable in every way. Their beauty, selfless love, spirit, determination, and strength are admirable. Thank you for being the woman that you are and for making the world a better place. Remember, wherever you are, there is magic. Happy Women’s Day.

Wiets Botes

Wiets Botes, Lecturer: Teaching Practice, School of Education

Question: What can men do more to support women in our society?

Answer: Women’s Day should not be about making women stronger. Women have always been strong. Women’s Day should rather be about changing society’s perception about that strength, there is absolutely no limit to what women can accomplish in society.

 

Chantel Louw

Chantel Louw, Advanced Diploma in Management student

Question: How important is it for women to lift each other up and what does that mean to you?

Answer: Being a woman currently is very challenging given the misfortune that a lot of women face such as abuse, rape, and having self-confidence difficulties. A little act of kindness can empower a woman just by complimenting her and if that is what our energy and time are focused on, then we are using our energy to succeed as women.

Positive interactions, such as the lady’s pillow talk we have been having each year, help the Women of SPU and students to create a real movement to grow in sisterhood for a better tomorrow at SPU. The ultimate accomplishments we want to achieve are by uplifting and supporting each other as beautiful individuals who are unique in their way and have strong women that connect and support each other.

I believe, as women, we need to encourage each other and create a pathway that can lead to making other women stronger and more confident, especially in shaping their lives and careers.

Sukayna Obaray: Senior School Administrator, School of Humanities

Question: What do you think is the single biggest issue currently faced by women in South Africa?

Answer: Gender-based violence coupled with human trafficking and the deafening silence that surrounds the matter.

More to explore

SPU’s Varsity Shield Mascot Madness takes over the city

Gemmie and the SPU Cheerleading Squad On Monday, 3 February 2025, Sol Plaatje University (SPU) kicked off its Varsity Shield celebrations with an electrifying Mascot Madness activation. The event, aimed at rallying community support for SPU’s historic, first-ever qualification for

Something BIG is coming this Monday…

Kimberley, brace yourselves. This coming Monday, something loud is happening. Something bold. Something unforgettable. This isn’t just another Monday – it’s a day Kimberley and the entire Northern Cape will remember. For the first time ever, SPU has earned its