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GCO621S - GENDER COMMUNICATION - 2ND OPP - JANUARY 2023 |
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n Am I BI A u n IVER s ITY
OF SCIEnCE Ano TECHnOLOGY
FACULTY OF COMMERCE, HUMAN SCIENCESAND EDUCATION
DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNICATION
QUALIFICATION: BACHELOR OF COMMUNICATION
QUALIFICATION CODE: 07BCMM
LEVEL: 6
COURSE CODE: GCO6215
COURSE NAME: GENDER COMMUNICATION
SESSION: JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2023
PAPER: 1 OF 1
DURATION: 3 HOURS
MARKS: 80
EXAMINER(S)
SECOND OPPORTUNITY/SUPPLEMENTARY EXAM PAPER
DR. W. NJUGUNA
MR. T. MATENGU
MODERATOR:
DR. M. MHENE
INSTRUCTIONS
ANSWER THREEQUESTIONS ONLY. QUESTION ONE (1) IS COMPULSORY
1. Write clearly and neatly
2. Read all questions carefully
3. Number the answers clearly
THIS ASSIGNMENT CONSISTS OF ,1 PAGES
(Including this cover page)
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SECTION A: COMPULSORY
QUESTION 1
Gender Equality
[30 marks]
Read the story below entitled, Namibia a leader in gender equality. In view of our understanding of
the world where primarily it has been from a male perspective and women's voices are not heard,
do the following:
a) Write a summary of the story in not less than 250 words, highlighting five (5) key points that
stand out for you from the story and explain why the points stand out for you. (10 marks)
b) With at least four examples and in view of what was learnt in class and what you know is listed
in the National Gender Policy {2010-2020), discuss how this story affects Namibia's profile
both locally and internationally. (20 marks)
Namibia a leader in gender equality
News - National I 2019-12-06 Page no: 6
by ArlanaShikongo
NAMIBIA leads the continental pack on
gender equality, the recently launched
Africa Gender Index (AGI) report shows.
The country is one of only three states on the
continent ranked in the top ten across the
overall AG! score, based on three main
indicator areas.
The African Development Bank and the
United Nations Economic Commission for
Africa (Uneca) jointly launched the AGI
report at the fourth Global Gender Summit
hosted in Kigali, Rwanda, last week.
The index measures parity between men and
women across three specific dimensions,
namely economic, social, and representation
and empowerment.
"The index focuses on measuring gender inequalities in key capabilities for elementary 'functioning', without
which other aspects of human progress would be difficult to attain," the report states. According to this report,
Namibia has achieved 79,67% gender equality, which translates to an AG! score of0,797. The AG! is scored
out of 1, where a score of I represents parity between women and men.
The economic dimension assesses the equality of economic opportunities, labour market participation, wages
and incomes, business ownership and access to productive resources. The social dimension measures areas such
as access to and level of education, as well as health services. Lastly, the representation and empowerment
dimension looks at the extent to which women and men participate in the country's decision-making processes,
politics and government. Namibia scores well across all three dimensions.
Over the last few years, the country has been celebrated globally for its strides towards gender parity in various
sectors. As recently as December 20 I 8, Namibia received the African Gender Award from the 'Gender is My
Agenda Campaign' (Gimac) steering committee. The committee especially punctuated the countiy's promotion
of women's representation in key decision-making positions, as demonstrated by its parliament being 46%
women. This is in line with the conceptual 'zebra list' that the country introduced in its efforts toward achieving
the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Protocol on Gender and Development which aims for
50/50 representation in the government and politics.
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This representation contributes to Namibia's third place ranking in the AGI report's empowerment and
representation dimension. It scored 0,494 here. It is surpassed by Rwanda, which scored 0,626 and South
Africa, which scored 0,621. Rwandan women are constitutionally required to hold at least 30% of elected
positions, and 61% of their parliament is made up of women. Furthermore, 50% of the country's ministerial
positions are filled by women, and four of the seven supreme court justices are women. "Countries such as
Rwanda, South Africa, Lesotho, Namibia, and Uganda have taken deliberate steps through legislation and
quotas to increase the number of women in political positions. [...] The global evidence shows that greater
diversity amongst decision-makers matters," the report observes.
Even then, with a gender gap of 50,6% in this dimension, it is evident that Namibia still has exceptional strides
to make. In the economic dimension, the country ranks fifth, with a score of0,792. It is preceded by Botswana,
which scores 0,832, Seychelles (0,832), the Central African Republic (0,811) and Madagascar (0,795).
In the social dimension, the country ranks first, obtaining an AG! score of 1,294. It is closely followed by
Lesotho, which scores 1,281, and Mauritius, which scores 1,223.
The report reveals that Africa has an average score of 48,6%, with the continental scores ranging between 24%
and 79,7%. This indicates that the continent experiences a 51,4% gender gap. Southern Africa has a gender
equality score of 61,3%, the highest on the continent. Northern and eastern Africa score 51,8%, while western
and central Africa score the lowest with 43,7% and 42, 18%, respectively.
At the launch event of the report, chief of gender equality and women's empowerment at the African Centre for
Gender, Ngone Diop stated that while the nation has made strides, it is far from achieving gender equality.
"When it comes to the African continent, there is a lack of a very comprehensive, contextualised index that
could actually help African countries measure the progress they're making in implementing the regional and
global gender equality and women's empowerment commitments," she said. The index will be published every
two years.
In her foreword, the director of the gender, women and civil society department at the African Development
Bank, Vanessa Moungar, writes that the loss from gender inequalities is tremendous for continental wealth and
each country's economic performance. This is affirmed by the 'Power of Parity in Africa' report, which was also
launched at the gender summit. The report states that Africa could add US$316 billion or 10% to its total gross
domestic product by 2025 if all countries matched the progress towards gender equality of their best-performing
neighbour. The 'Power of Parity in Africa' report, prepared by The McKinsey Global Institute, provides a better
sense of the countries' more socio-economic shortcomings, as it takes a closer look at the potential boost to
economic growth that could come from accelerating progress towards gender equality.
In this report, Namibia achieved a parity score of0,72. On this scale, South Africa ranks higher with a gender
parity score of0,76. However, the report revealed that Namibia still experiences comparatively high inequality
when it comes to who holds leadership positions in the workplace, financial inclusion of women, and violence
against women. These indicators are ranked in comparison to global statistics.
https://www.namibian.com.na/ 196119/archive-read/Nam ibia-a-leader-in-gender-equalitv
SECTION B
CHOOSE TWO (2) QUESTIONS ONLY FROM THIS SECTION
QUESTION 2
Sexual Assault
(25 marks]
In attempting to prevent sexual assault, educators, organizations, and others have often targeted
women, focusing on teaching them how to police their own behaviour (e.g., do not go out alone,
do not dress too provocatively). In view of this assertion, explain the following:
a) Why would feminists criticise this approach? {10 marks)
b) What is a more effective approach and why? (15 marks)
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QUESTION 3
National Gender Policy (2010-2020)
[25 Marks]
In the Namibia National Gender Policy {2010-2020}, point 4.2 on Gender, Education and Training,
the policy objective for this point is: Reduce gender inequalities in education, improve school
completion rates for girls and increase women's accessto vocational training, science and
technology.
Part 1
a) With at least three examples and what you have learnt in the course, explain how you
understand the above policy. (6 marks)
b) To your knowledge and with at least three examples to support your answer, has this
objective been achieved or not achieved? (9 marks)
Part 2
Two of the 18 broad strategies under this policy are mentioned below:
I. Strive for balanced male-female participation rates in pre-primary-, primary-, secondary- and
tertiary education, especially for the most disadvantaged and marginalised groups.
II. Eliminate gender disparities in access to all areas of pre-primary, primary-, secondary- and
tertiary education, by ensuring that as of early schoolyears and continuously, both girls and
boys, men, and women, shall have access to career guidance, training, bursaries, and loans.
With at least two examples, extensively provided for each strategy, explain:
a) How you understand the above two strategies (3 marks)
b} With examples, explain if you think they have been attained and if not, how you think
they can be attained. (7 marks)
QUESTION 4
Gendered Media
[25 marks]
Based on your knowledge of gendered media, provide an extensive analysis of the following
statement: "Media stereotypes of black women simultaneously reflect and distort both the ways in
which black women view themselves (individually and collectively) and the ways in which they are
viewed by others". (Hudson, 1998, p. 249)
END OF EXAM
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