Why SPAR Cares
It is a well-known and saddening fact that cases of gender-based violence (GBV) in South Africa are extremely high, leading to some calling it a pandemic and the country to being labelled "The Rape Capital of the World". This is not something that any South African should be proud of, or be able to shrug off. Gender-based Violence and Femicide affects people across society, in relation to all genders, status levels, ages and colours.
At SPAR, we care about the wellbeing of our staff and our communities. So in 2019 the Group decided to take practical steps to deal with the scourge of gender-based violence and femicide. We therefore partner with established organisations who have a strong record of dealing with their particular challenges and responsibilities, to encourage them to strengthen their approach, increase the number of trained and supported resources and be able to provide better support to the people who are in their care. This is by no means a 3-month campaign but an ongoing initiative, until we can say that GBV has been eliminated in our society.
Why 12 Months of Appreciation
SPAR’s chosen methods of dealing with GBV are to partner with organisations who work within communities to eliminate GBV, in various ways. There are many organisations across the country who do this, and often go unrecognised for the work they do. We have chosen a small sample of these organisations from different regions, who work in varying ways to provide support, education, and empathy for victims of GBV, often with very meagre funds. For every month in 2022, we will be highlighting such an organisation, to let them know they are being recognised and appreciated for the work that they are doing, in their communities.