October has been declared Social Development Month. Annually during October the Department of Social Development highlight key government programs that are aimed at fighting poverty and building a caring society for all, together with all Partners: Agencies, Non-Governmental Organisations and Community-Based Organisations.
Throughout the month, the Department of Social Development, together with its agencies, the National Development Agency (NDA) and the South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) host events to spread awareness of, and accelerate the various services that Government offers to vulnerable groups.
The focus of the Social Development Month is to accelerate service delivery to address key socio-economic challenges and contribute to the attainment of government priorities. In particular, the activities of Social Development Month 2013 will focus on:
Building on the successes of the previous years, and as part of taking government to the people, the department will focus on key programs that will bring about sustainable improvement in the well being of individuals, families and communities.
Among other things the key activities for Social Development Month will include:
- International Day for Older Persons
- Grand Parents Day
- Official opening and launch of six Soup Kitchens
- World Food Day (done in collaboration with Department of Agriculture)
- International Day for Poverty Eradication
- Graduation of Thogomelo Project Learners
- Roll out and implementation of Project Mikhondzo
Older persons
The launch of Social Development Month for 2013, will be held in conjunction with the International Day for Older Persons on the 1 October 2013 in Hopetown at the Steynville Community Centre. The 01 October is a special day for older persons all over the world as it recognises the contributions of older persons and also examine issues that affect their lives.
The first week in October is also the National Older Persons Week in South Africa. This week was officially launched by the President of South Africa, Mr Jacob Zuma at a luncheon which he hosted for older persons from the nine provinces on the 29 September 2013. The theme for the older persons week is “The future we want, what older persons are saying” Zuma said “ The theme emphasises the importance of older persons in decision making and to involve them in the development of policies that affect senior citizens . It should be noted that older persons are capable of deciding what is best for them”
It is also a week in which the rights and dignity of the older persons who affected by the country’s troubled past will be observed. “They lived through troubled times , worked hard and raised their children and grandchildren and cared for families as best as they could. The majority were denied decent education. They were forcibly moved from their homes and suffered immeasurable loss but they survived. We are glad they contributed so positively to the South Africa we live in today” said President Zuma.
During his address at the Luncheon the President went on to announce that government is preparing to phase out the means test for the old age grant by the year 2016. Many older persons, especially women, have been adversely affected by the means test which assumes that they benefit from the income of their spouses or partners or have other income when in most cases they do not. Phasing out the means test will thus be an important intervention because more money in the hands of grandmothers is always welcome. Such money is more than likely to be invested in the welfare of the household and grandchildren.
The National Older Persons week will be until the 6 October 2013, which is Grandparents Day. Therefore as much as people celebrate Mother’s and Father’s Day, a request is made that we grant our grandparents the similar attention and appreciation on Grandparents Day. An appeal is made to children and youth to begin planning for Grandparents Day on Sunday 06 October and prepare to spend quality time with their grandparents.
From the 20 to 24 October 2013, a contingent of 130 older persons from the Northern Cape will be participating in the National Golden Games which will be held in Boksburg Gauteng. The Golden Games for Older Persons project consists of a series of competitive, but fun track and field events for people over the age of 60.
The aim of this project is to improve the quality of life of older persons and their families, and to promote awareness programs with respect to physical and recreation activities and safety on their behalf. Except for encouraging Active Ageing, it also aims to improve integration between population groups that have historically not had a chance to interact.
It is also a platform where for older persons from all nine provinces can display their talents in sport , indigenous games , fun games and show case traditional and cultural activities.
War on Poverty
Food insecurity—meaning a lack of access to food of sufficient quality and quantity to perform usual daily activities—lies at the heart of the hardship faced by over 11 million South Africans. Women, children and the elderly are the most severely affected. As in most countries worldwide, food insecurity in South Africa is indisputably a consequence of poverty, and poverty is directly linked to income inequality.
The rising food prices, particularly of maize and wheat, which forms the staple diet of the poor in South Africa makes it even worse and therefore we are posed with serious problems for the urban and rural poor.
In addressing issues of food insecurity, the Department of Social Development funds Soup Kitchens and Drop-In-Centres initiatives that have food security as the core of their programmes. During the month of October 2013, the Department of Social Development will be launching and officially opening six Soup Kitchens in the Province. All the Soup Kitchens that will be opened are in War on Poverty Areas. The Areas in which they will be opened are Modderriver and Barkley ( Frances Baard District ) , Maramane and Postmasburg ( ZFM Macqawu District ), Kharkams ( Namakwa District ) and Gadiboe ( John Taolo Gaetsewe District). Each of the six Soup Kitchens will be receiving R 106 500.00 at the there official opening.
The Department of Social Development gives effect to the food for all campaign through the social protection element of our work, which makes funding available to Soup Kitchens and Drop-In-Centres to run food provision points across the province.
This year will see the establishment of an additional 28 Soup Kitchens (seven thus far including the six to be officially opened in October 2013) in War on Poverty wards, ensuring that each and every War on Poverty ward has a food provision point. This will bring to total the number of Soup Kitchens across the province to 137. In total the department will allocate about R 11 500 000 towards these soup kitchens to provide 600 000 meals to 32 000 households.
These Soup Kitchens respond to the needs of the poor, vulnerable and destitute who find it difficult to respond to the shocks and stresses that threaten their livelihoods.
The Department of Social Development has also purchased and donated a light delivery vehicle for the Little Big Cup Soup Kitchen which is situated in Lieliefontein in the Kamiesberg Municipality in Namakwa.
The Little Big Cup Soup Kitchen is running a chicken production project and a vegetable garden as part of a sustainable project to fund themselves. The purchase of the light delivery vehicle will therefore assist them with the transportation of the vegetables and chickens which they will be selling to potential customers. The soup kitchen is located in a very rural area and hence service providers where they can purchase the groceries for the soup kitchen is relatively far.
Project Mikhondzo
On 2 September 2013 , the National Minister for Social Development Ms Bathabile Dlamini launched a new project to expand social services to the countries 1300 poorest wards and called on community members to their support to the department and its agencies ( South African Social Security Agency and National Development Agency).
Project Mikhondzo (which means footprint in Xitongo) compels office bound officials from the Department of Social Development, SASSA and the NDA to join frontline officials to interact with communities in a bid to tackle social problems such as poverty, malnutrition , violence against women and children , youth and child development and substance abuse.
The purpose of the Mikhondzo is also to monitor social development service delivery at ward level with a view to determine the gap between policy formulation and implementation. The project further intends to increase the footprint and visibility of the Department of Social Development in our communities and to improve and accelerate Social Development services that have been identified to be lacking.
The Northern Cape Department of Social Development under the leadership of MEC Chotelo has already started with the roll out of Project Mikhondzo with community meetings in Galeshewe in Frances Baard and Bathlaros in John Taolo Gaetsewe which were held in September. In the month of October community meetings to intensify Project Mikhondzo will be held in De Aar ( Pixley Ka Seme) , Kharkams ( Namakwa ) and Pabellelo ( ZF Mgcawu).
The outcomes of the 12 month project is to understand the service gaps of Social Development , to review the current DSD Service Delivery Model , Strengthen Integration , Appraise Social Development interventions including NGO’s and most importantly improve and accelerate Social Development Services. The priority areas that we will focussing on during the roll out and implementation of Project Mikhondzo is Child and Youth Development , Services to persons with Disabilities , Services to Older Persons , Anti Substance Abuse Programmes , Gender Based Violence , NGO Capacity Building and Food for all ( Food Insecurity Programme).
Graduation of Thogomelo Project Learners
210 Home Based Community Care Givers in the province completed the Thogomelo Skills Development Programme which was accredited by the Health and Welfare Sector Education and Training Authority (SETA).
The word thogomelo was chosen as it means “caring” or “taking care” in Venda, one of South Africa’s 11 official languages. Community caregivers are the backbone of community care for vulnerable children, yet their psychosocial well-being remains largely neglected. The Thogomelo Project addresses the often unmet psychosocial needs of caregivers and equips them to respond to child abuse, neglect, and exploitation.
Using activity-based, participatory learning to engage a diverse range of community caregivers, the project provides guidance on a comprehensive set of topics, including strengthening relationships and community, optimising self care, accessing and mobilising resources, responding to child abuse and neglect, and increasing HIV/AIDS literacy. This is the first psychosocial support skills development program to be registered with the South African Qualifications Authority, thereby providing credits for learners to develop a career path towards a recognised qualification. It uniquely combines psychosocial support and child protection components to address training needs identified by learners. A second curriculum focusing on advanced child protection skills will be developed for supervisors of community caregivers during Year 2 of the project.
The Thogomelo Project is built on three core principles that aim to foster local ownership and ensure the sustainability of these efforts:
- Embed the project in existing structures. By systematically linking with activities in the public sector and civil society, the project is building on current activities and helping to ensure sustainability.
- Comprehensively address the needs of orphans and vulnerable children. In addition to service provision, the project is addressing the critical areas of networking and advocacy to equip community caregivers with the skills to address the needs of children at all levels.
- Build on what works. The project is incorporating state-of-the-art thinking into project implementation. For example, the nationally accredited community caregiver training manual will complement national efforts while incorporating emerging and promising practices.
Together, these principles, activities and resources are allowing communities to care for their community caregivers, providing them with the psychosocial support and skills they need to perform their tasks well. The program is also supporting community caregivers in promoting safe and healthy families – and, in turn, improving the well being of the many children who depend on them.
Over and above this some of the key objectives we seek to attain during this month would include amongst others:
- Promoting social development.
- Celebrating key achievements on government programmes.
- Highlighting the plight of citizens.
- Create community awareness on Social Development and government in general, while highlighting the roles and responsibilities of communities.
- Accelerate service delivery.
- Address key socio-economic challenges.
