KwaZulu-Natal MEC for Public Works and Infrastructure Martin Meyer has vowed to double the representation of women in the construction industry.
Speaking at the historic launch of the construction industry’s first women’s advisory board on Tuesday, Meyer said she would work hard to double the number of women-owned businesses in the construction industry, particularly in the construction industry, from 11%.
The advisory body, known as She Builds, is the first advisory body by a government department and will advise the MEC and the department on all issues affecting women’s enterprises in the built environment.
Meyer said it’s been strange so far. Women are known to build things that last: homes, communities, and families, but they have long been excluded from the male-dominated construction industry.
“We know for a fact that there are many problems within the construction industry. For a long time women have been excluded, and shamefully, that exclusion has become normalized. Reflecting on this, I took a step back and looked at how this exclusion happened.
“According to Stats SA, which publishes employment statistics by gender in South Africa, in August last year (2025), to commemorate Women’s Month, the unemployment rate for women was significantly higher at 35.9% compared to 31% for men. In the construction industry, 89% of men were employed compared to just 11% of women,” Meyer said.
This means that tens of thousands of capable, potentially qualified and healthy women are left out of the labor market in various sectors, he said. He further said that the disparity widens when looking at national qualifications.
Additionally, Meyer said the same report found that 39.9% of unemployed women with an educational background compared to 39.9% for men. It was 31.7%.
“Looking at the construction sector as a whole, Stats SA’s second quarter statistics show that although the domestic construction sector has recorded growth, it is still dominated by men, who make up 88.6% of the workforce, with women accounting for only 11.4%,” Meyer said.
Prime Minister Thamsanka Ntuli was also present at the presentation and praised the ministry for coming up with such an innovative idea.
Mr Ntuli also said he would advise against going to the MEC. She promised to ensure that all red tape is removed so that women are truly empowered.
“Through the creation of this Women’s Advisory Council, I would like to see the red carpet replaced with red carpet where we can point to real progress in women’s emancipation.”
He directed the MEC to compile statistics on all private and public projects currently underway in the province and ascertain how women are benefiting from such projects.
Speaking on behalf of the group, Tori Sibane of CT Construction welcomed the group’s launch and said that as a woman in the industry, she was hopeful to finally see concrete results after so many unfulfilled promises.
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