“VUT’s Women’s Dialogue calls for leadership that empowers, not just leads, championing inclusivity, mentorship, and gender equality in South Africa.”
26 August 2025 | Story By: Staff Reporter | Picture: Supplied
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20 August 2025 – Vanderbijlpark, South Africa: The Vaal University of Technology (VUT) marked Women’s Month with a Women’s Dialogue that brought together voices from government, academia, business, and the community to reimagine what women’s leadership means in South Africa today.
Hosted at the Desmond Tutu Great Hall at the university’s Vaal campus on Tuesday, 19 August 2025, under the theme “Empowering Women and Being Voices of Change: What Are We Doing as Women in Leadership to Empower Other Women?”, the dialogue was headlined by the Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development, Mmamoloko Kubayi.
The gathering created a safe and inspiring space where stories of resilience met urgent calls for change. It was a day of honesty, celebration, and a deep reminder that empowerment is not a favour, but a right that must be embedded into the systems that govern our lives.
Minister Kubayi set the tone with a stirring keynote address, reminding delegates that while many women have broken through barriers to claim their place in society, the fight is far from over.
“As we celebrate women who, against all odds, have managed to climb up the social ladder, we must more vigorously fight to break the unnecessary barriers they have had to overcome. As we reflect on the past 30 years and more of our democracy, it is also an opportunity to reflect on what programmes and actions have been undertaken for the advancement of women and the achievement of gender equality in critical areas of concern,” Minister Kubayi said.
For VUT’s Vice-Chancellor and Principal, Professor Khehla Ndlovu, the dialogue was not just about recognition, but responsibility. He spoke about the university’s vision to become a future-ready and inclusive institution.
“Our vision of a future-ready university is inseparable from the vision of an inclusive university. When we create spaces for women to lead, to innovate and shape institutional culture, we are not ticking boxes of representation, we are enriching the very fabric of leadership itself,” Professor Ndlovu said, noting VUT’s deliberate focus on mentorship, academic advancement, and gender equity.
The dialogue shifted gears when the stories shared by women leaders across higher education, business, and civil society were discussed.
Professor Pamela Dube of the Central University of Technology, Dr Grace Mukondoleli Kanakana-Katumba and Professor Christa Grobler of VUT, Letitia de Wet of Enactus South Africa, and VUT’s Chief Financial Officer, Nthanyiseni Dhumazi, spoke of their journeys, the obstacles that tested them, the support systems that lifted them, and the determination that kept them moving forward. Their reflections painted a picture of courage, sacrifice, and hope, reminding the audience that women’s success is not just about individual triumphs, but about opening doors wide enough for others to walk through.
As the dialogue drew to a close, one message rang clear: women in leadership cannot afford to see themselves as solitary figures breaking ceilings. They must be builders of a shared legacy, raising the floor for generations yet to come. In this spirit, the dialogue was not simply an event, it was a call to action.