The application attempts promote the existing-years African heritage regarding lobola with the modern tools-driven world

A different app always calculate lobola has brought Southern area Africa by violent storm, with lots of female (and you will men) using it to ascertain just how much they are worthy of

Application developer Robert Matseneng has generated good Lobola Calculator – an application which enables individuals to size exactly how many cattle they are worth.

Lobola, or magadi because it’s named within my society, is actually a historical society where a guy will pay a specific rates having good woman’s hand in relationship. Previously, the purchase price would be paid-in the form of cattle, nevertheless these months cash is a more simple treatment for spend lobola.

Away from attraction, I installed the fresh new application to see what which barometer getting used determine a ladies worth inside people was about.

However in fact, this would be a ridiculous sum of money to visit this website right here ask getting

Among other things, the latest application explores an effective female’s top, weight and exactly how glamorous the woman is (between “most very hot” in order to “definitely not”), attributes I think have absolutely nothing related to how much lobola a guy is always to pay. In practice, questions regarding their degree additionally the level of youngsters this lady has would also be used into account from the parents inside it immediately after transactions have started.

With respect to the software, just after factoring all of these from inside the, my family you’ll ask for lobola from R74,500 for me personally – roughly the same as nine genuine cattle. My dad was so pleased.

A possible suitor would be around the same years when i was and you can won’t likely be able to pay for one form of money. Brand new cost regarding lobola, and you can planning for life adopting the wedding, try the one thing of several parents to consider in advance of buying a cost.

Matseneng should get kudos for having the new software query users to help you suggest whether they is actually male and female. This shows your app isn’t particularly geared towards women. Having said that, we can’t disregard the proven fact that this app is aimed at feminine over it is during the guys.

A beneficial Nigerian equivalent of the latest lobola app, Fiance Rates, premiered this past year. Fiance Rates spends an even more specific barometer when you look at the figuring a female’s worth; they considers their unique cooking results, skin tone, whether or not this lady has tattoos, and you can whether or not the woman is “prayer warrior” or “club girl”.

I’ve visited just remember that , lobola is not regarding the purchasing a lady, but alternatively from the integrating group before wedding – within my society, fulfilling the prospective bridegroom along with his parents constantly simply happens once describes lobola took lay (or when a couple of drops expecting beyond matrimony). Bringing Mandla or Tshepo home to have a sunday is highly looked down upon during my family relations, as it is in lot of other black colored parents.

However, there was commendable, social aspects of lobola a large number of some one nevertheless should hold on to, one cannot simply refuse this new patriarchal characteristics of your own practice – a great female’s really worth is alleged to lessen depending on the number off pupils this lady has and you will, in some cases, whether this woman is a beneficial virgin or otherwise not. Which criterion has never been placed on dudes.

You will find a tip from humour to help you applications such as these (Matseneng states one to “truthfully it was all a joke”) however,, because perceptions away from morality and respectability can be used to police women’s behavior, it is quite unsettling.

Who’ll disregard the diving teacher, Tim Osrin, who pummelled a ladies who had been taking walks off the road, upcoming warranted his procedures by the claiming the guy think she was an effective sex staff member (on implication you to sex experts receive and you can are entitled to physical violence), or the men which removed and overcome an early on woman from the an excellent Johannesburg cab rank simply because she dared to put on a great micro dress.