After losing her daughter to gender-based violence, Nomangwane Mrwetyana is working to help create safer communities for women and girls.
Cape Town, South Africa (21 October 2026) – Turning conversations about gender-based violence into meaningful action is at the heart of Nomangwane Mrwetyana’s work through the Uyinene Mrwetyana Foundation, which she co-founded to help prevent violence and empower young people to become part of the solution.
From gender-based violence education and survivor support to youth leadership development, the foundation focuses on creating change that extends beyond awareness campaigns.
One of its initiatives, the Uyinene Mrwetyana Football Club, uses sport, development and psycho-education to engage boys and encourage them to become responsible and compassionate men. The programme reflects the foundation’s belief that preventing violence also means challenging harmful attitudes and helping young people build healthier relationships.
Nomangwane will bring this message to the One Young World Summit in Cape Town from 3 to 6 November 2026, where she will contribute to a plenary challenge on gender-based violence.
Her work is shaped by the loss of her daughter, Uyinene, a 19-year-old University of Cape Town student whose life was taken in August 2019 after going to collect a parcel. Her death sparked widespread protests and renewed calls for action to improve women’s safety.
The priority for Nomangwane is to ensure that such tragedies do not simply prompt temporary outrage, but lead to lasting change.
“South Africa does not need greater awareness of gender-based violence. We know what is happening to women and girls in our homes, communities and public spaces. What we need now is action from institutions, communities, leaders and individuals, before another woman’s death becomes the reason we pay attention.”
Her call comes as South Africa continues to grapple with alarming levels of violence against women. The Human Sciences Research Council’s first national prevalence study found that more than one in three South African women have experienced physical and/or sexual violence in their lifetime. Recent killings of women in Ekurhuleni have once again brought the crisis into sharp focus.
One Young World managing director Ella Robertson McKay says Nomangwane’s work highlights the importance of prevention, education and youth involvement in tackling the issue.
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Through her work, she hopes to help turn that call into practical steps towards safer communities for women and girls.
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