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Zanele Sokatsha, centre, lead research for the GRIT task

She states she was breached by authorities. Now she's brainstorming an AI -integrated app with a panic button that alerts private security to assist other women captured in South Africa's unfortunately high rates of abuse.

Peaches, as the 35-year-old sex employee asked to be identified, is amongst the more than a 3rd of South African females that will experience physical or sexual assault 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 current update of the app established by the nonprofit GRIT (Gender Rights In Tech).

Equipped with an emergency button that releases security officers, a proof vault and a resource centre, the app will also include 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 releases security officers, an an AI-driven chatbot

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

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

That same year, 5,578 females were murdered, a 34 percent increase from the previous year.

In Peaches' case, she said she was forced to provide two policemans "services for complimentary" to evade arrest for prostitution.

"To me, GRIT isn't simply a project-- it's a requirement," founder Leanora Tima told AFP.

"I wished to create tech-driven solutions that empower survivors, ensuring they receive the immediate aid, legal guidance and emotional assistance they need without barriers," Tima said.

- 'Roadblocks to help' -

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

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

"There's a great deal of obstructions still in getting gain access to and aid," she said.

Thato, a woman 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 contusions were not in fact related to football".

It was only when the coach took the team to an anti-GBV occasion in Soweto, southwest of Johannesburg, that she learned there were organisations that help ladies in her circumstance.

"It was actually heartwarming for me to discover such a space," she said, preferring to provide 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 upload proof like photos, videos and authorities reports that will be protected on GRIT's servers.

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

"It will save lives," said one lady at the very same workshop attended by Peaches.

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

Once downloaded, it can work without data, making it available to those who can not afford phone plans or remain in rural locations with limited networks.

The chatbot Zuzi, to be released in the coming months, library.kemu.ac.ke will be available on the app and pattern-wiki.win also integrated into certain social platforms, technical lead Lebogang Sindani said.

Zuzi was initially intended to offer only practical details, like how to obtain a protection order.

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

- 'All they know' -

Even if there are more than ever to help 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 an intricate history of colonisation and segregation, belief in male dominance, a lack of excellent 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 young boy to guy."

"All they know is violence," said Sandile Masiza, a coordinator of the GBV Response Team for wiki.dulovic.tech Johannesburg's child well-being authority.

"We require more programs that are not just going to be solely concentrated on victim assistance, but wrongdoer avoidance," Masiza said.

"Society has actually normalised violence against ladies and ladies," UN Women GBV expert Jennifer Acio informed AFP.

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