AI App Offers A Lifeline For S.Africa s Abused Women

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Zanele Sokatsha, centre, lead research for the GRIT job


She states she was violated by authorities. Now she's brainstorming an AI-integrated app with a panic button that signals private security to assist other females caught in South Africa's tragically high rates of abuse.


Peaches, as the 35-year-old sex employee asked to be determined, disgaeawiki.info is amongst the more than a third of South African ladies that will experience physical or sexual abuse in their life times, according to UN figures.


Slender and outspoken, she remained in a group of around 15 females who gathered late January to workshop the most recent upgrade of the app established by the not-for-profit GRIT (Gender Rights In Tech).


Equipped with an emergency situation button that releases security officers, a proof vault and a resource centre, the app will likewise consist of an AI-driven chatbot called Zuzi that will be showcased at the Artificial Intelligence Action Summit in Paris this month.


The app has an emergency situation button that deploys security officers, an an AI-driven chatbot


"This app, it's going to give me that hope ... that my human rights should be thought about," Peaches informed AFP, asking not to offer her real name to secure her safety.


There were more than 53,000 sexual offenses reported in South Africa in 2023-24, including more than 42,500 rapes, according to cops figures.


That exact same year, 5,578 women were killed, a 34 percent rise from the previous year.


In Peaches' case, she said she was required to offer two law enforcement officers "services free of charge" to avert arrest for prostitution.


"To me, GRIT isn't just a job-- it's a requirement," creator Leanora Tima informed AFP.


"I wished to develop tech-driven services that empower survivors, guaranteeing they receive the urgent aid, legal assistance and psychological assistance they require without barriers," Tima said.


- 'Roadblocks to help' -


Many cases of gender-based violence (GBV) go unreported since victims face stigma or are turned away by authorities, said GRIT lead scientist Zanele Sokatsha.


'There's a great deal of roadblocks still in getting gain access to and aid,' Sokatsha says


"There's a lot of roadblocks still in getting gain access to and aid," she said.


Thato, a female in her 30s, said she sustained years of physical abuse by her stepfather before she discovered aid was available.


A passionate football gamer, she said her coach realised that "some swellings were not actually associated to football".


It was only when the coach took the group to an anti-GBV event in Soweto, southwest of Johannesburg, that she learned there were organisations that assist females in her situation.


"It was in fact heartfelt for me to discover such a space," she said, preferring to give just her very first name.


GRIT's app aims to make it easier for women to gain access to resources from their homes, where much of the abuse happens.


It has a map of close-by centers and shelters and a digital vault where they can submit proof like pictures, videos and police reports that will be protected on GRIT's servers.


The features are based upon user feedback gathered at workshops around the nation.


"It will conserve lives," said one female at the exact same gone to by Peaches.


The app is free, funded by GRIT's donors including the Gates Foundation and Expertise France. It already has 12,000 users.


Once downloaded, it can work without information, making it available to those who can not pay for phone strategies or remain in rural locations with minimal networks.


The chatbot Zuzi, to be launched in the coming months, will be available on the app and likewise integrated into certain social platforms, technical lead Lebogang Sindani said.


Zuzi was at first meant to offer only useful details, like how to obtain a protection order.


But its repertoire has actually been broadened after feedback "that individuals are more interested in talking to Zuzi about ... intimate things" like their health, Sindani said.


- 'All they know' -


Even if there are more services than ever to assist women who are attacked and strong public condemnation of cases that make it to the media, South Africa's abuse rates remain stubbornly high.


It is "a perfect storm" of a complicated history of colonisation and segregation, belief in male supremacy, an absence of great good example and economic stresses, said Craig Wilkinson, creator of Father A Country.


"No kid is born an abuser," said Wilkinson, whose nonprofit concentrates on reaching guys. "There's something failing in the journey from boy to male."


"All they know is violence," said Sandile Masiza, a planner of the GBV Response Team for Johannesburg's kid welfare authority.


"We require more programs that are not simply going to be entirely concentrated on victim support, however wrongdoer prevention," Masiza said.


"Society has normalised violence against females and girls," UN Women GBV professional Jennifer Acio informed AFP.


"That's why we keep sharing details and trying to empower females ... to understand what is an abuse of their rights, to know when to report."

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