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Johannesburg - Women should be encouraged to join the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), Defence Minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula said on Tuesday.
She told the defence department's women's conference at Swartkop Air Force Base near Pretoria that many women able to join the SANDF did not do so due to a lack of communication.
"Many women who could join and do well in the various services are not doing so, in part due to the fact that there is not enough communication about the real work that is done in the military."
The perception women had of the armed services was often limited to negative and violent images from films and news coverage.
The defence department's gender strategy was based on social justice, human dignity, advancing human rights, and fighting inequality. The pace of gender empowerment remained slow.
"To date, gender integration has not yet reached [the required levels] we had anticipated, particularly in the higher echelons of leadership in the SANDF," the minister said.
"We are still struggling to meet some of the representation targets of 40% at the entry level and 30% at higher levels as prescribed by [the defence department's] gender policy."
