According to a study by Gender Links in SA and the SADC, none of the media in South Africa had reached a parity level in terms of gender balance. The regional study conducted a review of 126 media bodies representing 23678 employees, while the SA study looked at 11 media, representing 11750 employees.

The results of the report show that only 50 percent of women in SA make it to the top end of newsrooms while in Lesotho at least 73 percent of women make it to the top.

The Seychelles came third when it came to gender parity in the media with 49 percent women; followed by Mozambique 27 percent, Malawi 23 percent, Democratic Republic of Congo 22 percent; and Zimbabwe with 13 percent
The research took place in the context of the SADC Protocol on Gender and Development, which urged the media and all institutions in the public and private sectors to achieve gender parity in decision- making positions by 2015.

The study found that more women (61 percent) than men (31 percent) were employed part-time and women were more likely to be employed in support departments such as human resources, marketing or advertising, finance and administration.

The study said one of the key findings was that while there was a high level of commitment to gender equality in the media, there were no comprehensive and systematic policies to address the gender gap.