Zanele Sokatsha, centre, lead research study for the GRIT job

She states she was violated by authorities. Now she's brainstorming an AI-integrated app with a panic button that informs personal security to help other ladies captured in South Africa's unfortunately high rates of abuse.

Peaches, setiathome.berkeley.edu as the 35-year-old sex employee asked to be identified, is among the more than a third of South African females 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 women who gathered late January to workshop the newest upgrade of the app developed by the nonprofit GRIT (Gender Rights In Tech).

Equipped with an emergency button that releases security officers, an evidence 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 button that deploys gatekeeper, an an AI-driven chatbot

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

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

That same year, 5,578 ladies were murdered, utahsyardsale.com a 34 percent rise from the previous year.

In Peaches' case, she said she was required to give 2 law enforcement officers "services for complimentary" to evade arrest for prostitution.

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

"I wanted to develop tech-driven services that empower survivors, ensuring they get the immediate aid, legal guidance and emotional assistance they require without barriers," Tima said.

- 'Roadblocks to help' -

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

'There's a lot of obstructions still in getting gain access to and aid,' Sokatsha states

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

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

A passionate football player, she said her coach understood that "some bruises were not actually related to football".

It was just when the coach took the team to an anti-GBV event in Soweto, southwest of Johannesburg, that she found out there were organisations that assist women in her circumstance.

"It was actually heartfelt for me to discover such an area," she said, choosing to give just her first name.

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

It has a map of nearby clinics and shelters and a digital vault where they can publish proof like images, videos and police reports that will be protected on GRIT's servers.

The functions are based on user feedback gathered at workshops around the country.

"It will save lives," said one woman at the same workshop participated in by Peaches.

The app is complimentary, moneyed by GRIT's donors consisting of the Gates Foundation and Expertise France. It currently has 12,000 users.

Once downloaded, it can work without data, making it available to those who can not pay for phone plans or remain in rural locations with restricted 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 initially planned to offer only practical details, like how to obtain a defense order.

But its repertoire has actually been expanded after feedback "that people are more interested in speaking with Zuzi about ... intimate things" like their health, Sindani said.

- 'All they know' -

Even if there are more services than ever to help women who are assaulted 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 complex history of colonisation and segregation, belief in male supremacy, a lack of good function models and economic stresses, said Craig Wilkinson, founder of Father A Country.

"No kid is born an abuser," said Wilkinson, whose not-for-profit concentrates on reaching guys. "There's something failing in the journey from kid to man."

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

"We need more programmes that are not simply going to be solely concentrated on victim assistance, however wrongdoer avoidance," Masiza said.

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

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