Lessons from South Africa: Reimagining Safe Campuses in Eswatini

Lessons from South Africa: Reimagining Safe Campuses in Eswatini

University campuses should be places of growth, discovery, and safety. Yet, across the region, they too often become spaces where sexual harassment and gender-based harm thrive. Recognizing this urgent challenge, Women Unlimited Eswatini and Bantwana Initiative Eswatini supported by the UK Aid Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) through the What Works II programme embarked on a groundbreaking learning exchange to South Africa in July 2024, as part of their formative research processes to the Campus Sexual Harassment Prevention Intervention.

Observing Best Practices in South African Universities

The mission was to learn from other similar initiatives in the region on prevention of violence with Higher Education Institutions and bring those lessons home to Eswatini. The team visited the University of Witwatersrand (Wits) and the University of Pretoria; institutions that have developed robust systems to protect students and foster inclusive environments. Universities across South Africa have set commendable standards in the fight against sexual harassment and gender-based harm; lessons that are drawing attention from the region. The two Universities that we visited are showing that change is possible when prevention is embedded into the very fabric of campus life.

Wits: Peer-Led Safety and Accountability

At Wits, the Gender Equity Office (GEO) has become a cornerstone of accountability and care. It provides survivors with confidential support and ensures that disciplinary measures are not just available but enforced. But what makes the model remarkable is the integration of students themselves. Through the use of “Advocs” (trained student volunteers), the University has created a peer-led safety net. These students act as first responders, advocates, and watchdogs, ensuring that harmful behaviors are called out early and survivors are not left isolated.

University of Pretoria: Changing Campus Culture

The University of Pretoria, on the other hand, has focused on reshaping culture through its #SpeakOutUP program. Here, prevention goes beyond policies. Students take part in peer-driven “ResTalks” in their residences, where tough conversations about harassment, toxic masculinity, and respect take place in safe, informal spaces. The institution has also embraced inclusivity in a very practical sense: from gender identity training to allowing pronouns on student IDs, small changes are helping dismantle stigma and normalize respect for diversity.

Adapting Lessons for Eswatini

These lessons are transformative for Women Unlimited.  Under Litsemba Rising (Campus Sexual Harassment Prevention Intervention) our combined Unlimited Interact Clubs (UIC) and Protect Our Youth (POY) models are already engaging students in peer-led dialogues on sexual harassment and gender norms. The benchmarking visit confirmed that such approaches are not only effective but essential.Women Unlimited is adapting these insights into a comprehensive intervention at the University of Eswatini’s Kwaluseni campus, with ambitions to scale nationwide. We envision Eswatini where every campus is a safe learning environment free from violence.