In a country battling staggering rates of gender-based violence (GBV), a 16-year-old girl from South Africa has created an invention that could help save lives.
Bohlale Mphahlele, a learner at SJ van der Merwe Technical High School, has designed the Alerting Earpiece — a discreet wearable device that looks like a simple earring but hides powerful technology.
The earpiece quietly snaps photos of attackers and immediately sends distress alerts, including the victim’s live location, to trusted contacts and emergency services. This innovation not only enables rapid police response but also provides vital evidence for prosecution, often a critical gap in GBV cases.
South Africa has one of the world’s highest rates of violence against women and children. According to the South African Police Service, more than 120,000 cases of violent crimes against women and children are reported annually — with countless others going unreported due to fear and stigma.
Mphahlele said she was inspired to act after seeing the devastating impact of abuse on her community. “Technology shouldn’t just make life convenient; it should also protect the vulnerable,” she explained in an interview with Uzalendo News.
Her innovation has already gained recognition. At the Eskom Expo for Young Scientists, one of South Africa’s most prestigious platforms for youth-led solutions,
Mphahlele won a bronze medal in the engineering-electronics category. Judges praised her for tackling one of the country’s most urgent social issues with creativity and practicality.
Limpopo’s Education MEC, Polly Boshielo, called Mphahlele a “role model and change-maker,” urging government and private sector stakeholders to support the teen in refining and scaling her prototype.
Mphahlele isn’t stopping at the prototype stage. She is actively seeking funding, partnerships, and technical support to develop the earpiece into a market-ready product, with the goal of making it widely available to those most at risk.
The Alerting Earpiece represents more than just an invention — it symbolizes empowerment and hope in a country where too many lives are cut short by gender-based violence.
South Africa doesn’t just need more statistics. It needs solutions. And thanks to a 16-year-old girl from Limpopo, one such solution may soon be within reach.
