REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA COMBINED SECOND PERIODIC REPORT UNDER THE AFRICAN CHARTER ON HUMAN AND PEOPLE`S RIGHTS and INITIAL REPORT UNDER THE PROTOCOL TO THE AFRICAN CHARTER ON THE RIGHTS OF WOMEN IN AFRICA nutritious sources of food, which does not promote the health situation in female-headed households.282 25. Overall, many inequalities that are based on gender in South Africa are often deepened by characteristics such as age, disability, violence, harmful cultural practices, patriarchy, negative stereotyping and geographical location. 26. The legislative framework of South Africa is rooted in the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa and encapsulated in Chapter 2 thereof, the Bill of Rights, which affords all South Africans civil and political rights and socio-economic rights, such as the right to housing,283 healthcare, food, water and social security284 and education.285 The Constitution, as the supreme law of the land, provides the normative foundation for the advancement of women’s rights in South Africa. It provides for the establishment of one sovereign state, a common South African citizenship and a democratic system of government committed to achieving equality between men and women and people of all races. Moreover, the Constitution provides for the prohibition of racial, gender and all other forms of discrimination. In particular, section 9 of the Constitution stipulates that neither the state, nor any person, may discriminate directly or indirectly on the grounds of gender, sex, pregnancy, marital status or any other ground or combination of grounds listed or unlisted therein. 27. Since the end of apartheid and the advent of a constitutional democracy in South Africa, underpinned by values such as equality and rule of law, our country has endeavoured to put in put in place legal and policy frameworks that promote and protect the rights of women, in addition to ensuring equality for women. 28. Since the 1990’s, empowerment of women has increasingly been incorporated into national development agendas in the country. During the past decade, various quota systems and equity measures and mechanisms, aimed at measuring the levels of participation of women in the economy and decision-making, have been introduced and will be dealt with in more detail in the report. 29. In line with its commitment to gender equality, South Africa developed its National Policy Framework for Women’s Empowerment and Gender Equality, which was adopted by Cabinet in 2000, and has been the guiding beacon for the development and advancement of women and girls in the country. Government also developed a Gender Policy Framework for Local Government, as well as the National Strategic Framework for Women’s Economic Empowerment, among other sectoral policies and strategies guiding the mainstreaming of gender considerations across the work of government. 282 Statistics SA: December 2011, Social Profile of Vulnerable Groups in South Africa 2002-2010: p 62 (And also Altman et al 2009) 283 S 26 284 S 27 285 S 29 146