Deputy President Paul Mashatile will on Monday lead the launch of the National 16 Days of Activism for No Violence against Women and Children campaign at the Rustenburg Local Municipality in the North West province.

The programme will commence at 08:00 with a visit to the Rustenburg Gender Based Violence (GBV) Shelter, followed by a GBV walk at 09:00, which will start from the taxi precinct on Heystek Street to the Rustenburg Public Library. The formal programme will start at 11:00 at the Rustenburg Civic Centre.

This year's activation will be held under the theme, "30 Years of Advancing Collective Action to End Violence against Women and Children", with the sub-theme for the campaign being, "Harnessing Technology and Innovation to Combat Gender Based Violence and Accelerate a Gender Inclusive Digital Economy".

"Achieving meaningful change requires a cultural shift that challenges ingrained attitude and stereotypes about gender equality across all spheres of society, while denouncing societal norms that perpetuate gender based violence and femicide," the Presidency said in a statement.

The Deputy President will be joined by the Minister in the Presidency for Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities, Sindisiwe Chikunga, supported by the Department of Social Development, the North West Provincial Government, the National House of Traditional and Khoi-San Leaders and multilateral bodies.