Commemorating the International Day of the Boy Child, a coalition of leaders addresses the vital educational and social challenges confronting boys in South Africa, advocating for a future rooted in positive masculinity and mental wellness.
Government, business, and civil society united on Friday at Jeppe High School for Boys in Johannesburg to commemorate the International Day of the Boy Child, turning a national spotlight onto the systemic educational, psychological, and social challenges that are confronting young men in South Africa.
Under the banner “Breaking the Silence: Boys' Positive Masculinity and Mental Health”, the event served as a major platform to challenge the deeply ingrained, harmful norms of rigid masculinity.
The collaboration, spearheaded by the Department of Basic Education (DBE) and partners, including Premier FMCG, Aids Healthcare Foundation, and PRIMESTARS, represents a renewed, deliberate effort to ensure boys are not the “invisible half” of gender equity conversations.
MEC for Education, Sports, Arts and Culture, Lebogang Maile, was unequivocal about the societal costs of patriarchy on men, which begins with the boy child.
