President Appoints Zozibini Tunzi As Ambassador Against Gender-based Violence In South Africa!

While Zozibini Tunzi has been home on her victory tour, she has been bestowed with her most important title to date, the ambassador against gender-based violence.

South Africa (11 February 2020) – Miss Universe Zozibini Tunzi has been given a new title that may just be her most important to date. President Cyril Ramaphosa asked Zozi to be the ambassador against gender-based violence (GBV) in South Africa.

The president has started becoming more involved in the conversations surrounding gender-based violence. During 2019, women and children took to the streets, protesting gender-based violence and the lack of support given by the government.

The media spike in reporting of gender-based violence during September 2019 spurred many women to demand change in South Africa. After days of outcry by the public and continued protests, President Cyril Ramaphosa addressed crowds in Cape Town, promising to work on protecting women and children in South Africa.

President Appoints Zozibini Tunzi As Ambassador Against Gender-based Violence In South Africa!

The South African government then released a breakdown of how the president plans to combat gender-based violence. The full breakdown was reported by us in September 2019, which you can read here, but below is a brief outline.

The focus is on:
- Creating an understanding that violence against women is a man’s problem.
- The creation of a National Register of Offenders.
- Harsher minimum sentences for offenders.
- The boosting of emergency response teams for GBV cases.
- Additional funding for the GBV campaign.

To date, the conversation seems to have gotten a little quieter… until this weekend! President Cyril Ramaphosa has bestowed a great responsibility on Miss Universe, Zozibini Tunzi. He has asked her to become the ambassador against gender-based violence in South Africa.

Zozi has been using her voice to speak out against femicide and GBV for some time, but the endorsement from the president is everything! The public learned of the appointment via Arts and Culture deputy minister Nocawe Mafu during Zozi’s homecoming celebrations.

Deputy minister Mafu discussed the response President Cyril Ramaphosa gave when asked how he planned to combat GBV in Africa.


“He said: ‘I can do it because already I have an ambassador in SA. Her name is Zozibini Tunzi. She has already committed to this challenge, so I can take it, as president and as the government of South Africa, that she will be championing it on behalf of the government,” – Nocawe Mafu, Deputy Minister of Arts and Culture

We feel confident with Zozi on the frontline of the war against gender-based violence and know she will champion the cause for women across South Africa!