South Africa: Rose Thamae

An organization established by Rose Thamae Activist through based on her organizational work background she experience, she became a leader to empower and educate people around the community. The Let US Grow Organization creates a platform to create a positive lifestyle for people living with HIV/AIDS through Rape and Violence experience in their household.

Objectives

My personal mission is to groom, train, empower, and educate young women and child to live positive lifestyle, equip them through information being present in my life. The experience in my life gave me platform to teach young people to be campions in their household.

Key activities

Through the Organizations work for people living with HIV/AIDS, it gives an opportunity to create the Home based care, support group and Orphans and youth to be part of community change. The stigma in the community of Orange Farm makes the victims to be afraid to come forward.

Key challenges

Very few resource to refer the victim of Gender based violence in our community. The training platform is limited for women of the community that are being victimised, the transport to take the victims to rehabilitation centre. The funding is a huge challenge, to raise awareness in the community and to be give a job platform for the victims.

Results

Change at the individual level

It has changed my life to know more able myself, and has boosted my confidence.  It has contributed in imparting knowledge to help other people and this gives me inner peace knowing that i have helped other people. The confidence level that has increased gives me the ability to speak out to address issues faced by the community and gives me great pleasure seeing the change i’v e been striving to instil in someone else.

Evidence of change at the individual level

Working with a women organization called Letsema Organization, has helped many women in the Vaal region to come out and to partake in the platform of reducing the gender violence to zero percent. The Organization leader name it, Kethiwe Motaung, Admini, Letsema Organization, 0785795361.

Change at the household level

The change it has brought in my family is to participate in the environment of gender change. My family is hands on in the Organization and will work and it has already started in grooming my grandchildren to be a part of this change.

Evidence of change at the household level

My grandson Thabo Thamae has create a platform for other young people to be part of the youth organization called Grow Bacha, Young people are educating and empowering other peers in the community to reduce gender violence and also to stop gender violence in their households.

Change at institutional level

Through training the women in the community, it helped them to be hands on and be equipped with information received in the workshop provided by the Organization.  Violence has been reduced in their household to zero percent. Xoli, community member, 084 8563528

Evidence of change at institutional level       

Through training the women in the community, it helped them to be hands on and be equipped with information received in the workshop provided by the Organization. Violence has been reduced in their household to zero percent. Xoli, community member, 084 8563528

Change at a policy level       The gender championing in my Organizations in  raising awareness in the community, giving a platform for women to be involved and also to recognise any issues faced by other women who are afraid of coming and speaking out with matter they’re facing.

Evidence of change at a policy level

Nokuthula Zwane is one of our gender activists, she has been involved in the empowering other young women.

Capacity building

Providing the Gender based Violence training, and Women Empowerment. HIV and AIDS, Early childhood development, SRHR.

Lessons learned and shared

The learning of process was to empower women to raise their voice and support was rare. The dependence to their husband and the skill were not being presented to them.

Next Steps

The plans it has to create skills development for women and to fight to bring gender based violence to zero percent and bring resource to the community of Orange Farm in order to create shelter for victims and user-friendly institutions.