Sibonokuhle Ncube is the Regional Director for Africa and Europe for Mennonite Mission Network.
Oscar Siwali is the founder and director of SADRA.
During the month of August, Southern African Development and Reconstruction Agency celebrated the role of women as peacemakers in the face of conflict and oppression.
In August, Southern African Development and Reconstruction Agency (SADRA), a Mennonite Mission Network partner, celebrated women’s month by reflecting on the work done by SADRA’s Women in Peacebuilding, with focus on the impactful work of conflict mediators trained between 2024-2025.
The Women in Peacebuilding initiative follows in the footsteps of the Women’s March on Aug. 9, 1956, when more than 20,000 women marched to the seat of governmental power in Pretoria, South Africa in a historic embodiment of unity, resilience, and strength to protest the systemic oppression of apartheid.
South African History Online documents that South Africa women from all backgrounds and cultures, including Blacks, Coloureds (an official term for multiracial people in Southern Africa), Indians and Whites protested the abusive pass laws.
“…some carrying young children on their backs, some wearing traditional dresses and sarees, and others clothed in their domestic work outfits—all showed up to take part in the resistance against apartheid. The 1956 Women’s March played a vital role in the women becoming more visible participants in the anti-apartheid struggle.”
In early August, SADRA sent 48 monitoring and evaluation questionnaires to its conflict mediators, asking about the impact of the community mediation training on their lives, and if they had conducted any mediations since they had been trained by SADRA. The response rate of 43% was exceptional. Survey response rates typically range from 5-30%, with rates above 30% considered excellent. The mediators reported, collectively, they had conducted 35 mediation sessions in the past twelve months.
This means that families who participated in the mediation sessions got an opportunity to intentionally explore healthy pathways to peaceful resolutions with the help of a local mediator.
SADRA hopes that celebrating Women in Peacebuilding throughout the month of August will build solidarity and social cohesion with peace-making in communities across South Africa
SADRA bring the good news of Jesus’ peace to people in multiple programs, in addition to Women in Peacebuilding. There are teaching sessions in high schools to train students in non-violent, peer-mediation skills, to help them see alternatives to violence in their schools and neighborhoods. Other programs include training for election monitoring and working with church leaders to be peacemakers in their churches and communities.
