05 March – Gender

Today we joined by Zoliswa Gila – A Crane Operator at the Green Point stadium. This 31-year old mother of one, who was unemployed for five years, operates one of the 17 state of the art, tower cranes shipped to South Africa from Germany. Gila’s office is 80m above ground, where she towers over the site and has a bird eye’s view of Table Mountain. She has defied the male-dominated field and believes that she is the only female crane operator in the province. We wish her all the best with what she does; hopefully more women will venture in this field.

We also spoke to Rashieda Ebrahim – from the Farm Ladies Club. The aim of the club is to empower women in the community of Montrose Park. They invite all women who are in arts and crafts, baking, sewing and more. Other women in the club are unemployed and do the crafts to generate an extra income but Rashieda told us more about the club. If you are interested in joining the club or for more information you can contact Rashieda at (021) 376 1430.

And last but no least we were joined by Vuyokazi Nguqu – a very ambitious young woman from Khayelitsha. Vuyokazi or Vovo to those who know her was born with a chromosomal disorder as a result she is only half-a-metre tall at the age of 23. But the good news is that her height is not stopping her from dreaming big and her biggest dream is to be an actress. She shared with us some of the challenges she faces as young woman. Vovo has appealed to the members of the public to help her by donating a laptop because she wants to do computer training. If anyone can help Vovo please contact 079 744 0458
PICS:Vovo in studio, on the right Vovo and Busi
Taken by: Tina George