Challenges faced by females occupying leadership position at selected South African Higher Education Institutions, South Africa

Abstract

Women are often discriminated in many environments including the workplace and home front. Women in leadership positions are not an exception. In South Africa, the problem can be traced back to the Apartheid era. Since the dawn of democracy in 1994, South African government enacted legislation and policies that redress colonial imbalances by ensuring fair treatment and participation of females in the economy and leadership positions. Despite these provisions, more than 26 years into democracy, women are still discriminated and deprived of opportunities such as leadership positions in higher education institutions. Hence, this study investigated challenges faced by female leaders in institutions of higher education in South Africa. The study employed a qualitative approach, where data was collected using interviews from 20 purposively selected respondents from two selected higher education institutions in South Africa. Thematic analysis was used to analyse data. Gender stereotyping, gender equity, discrimination, inadequate mentoring, training, safety, and security concerns are major challenges facing women in higher education institutions’ leadership positions. Work-life balance also posed a major challenge given gender assigned roles. It is, therefore, recommended that enhancing more mentorship programs for women in leadership will fight discrimination and increase the number of women in leadership positions.