Madame Speaker and Deputy Speaker
Honourable Premier, Mrs Nomvula Mokonyane
Colleagues in the Executive Council
Leaders of various Political Parties
Honourable Members of the Provincial Legislature
Members of Parliament present here today
Mayors and Speakers from various municipalities
Heads of Departments, Government Officials and Representatives of Civil Society
Leaders of the business community
Special guests and members of the media
Distinguished guests
Comrades and friends
The people of Gauteng.
The department continues to deliver efficient and effective services to the poor and vulnerable individuals, families and communities in Gauteng. In delivering services, the department engages in partnerships with several stakeholders such as Non-Profit Organisations (NPOs).
The department contributes to education by providing access to early childhood development ( ECD) services to children from 0 to five years of age, registering and funding ECD centres, constructing ECD sites in the 20 PTP townships as part of the department's infrastructure development programme and increasing the number of children placed in funded ECD sites in historically disadvantaged areas.
During the year under review, 66 908 children aged 0 to five years received services from 1 118 funded partial care sites.
We are increasing our investment in this programme because we know that when poverty strikes a family, it is the children who bear the biggest brunt. Biological and intellectual growth cannot wait until a family has escaped poverty. We have a responsibility as a department that these vulnerable children do not run the risk of becoming the next generation of the poor. In order to turn this vicious cycle into a virtuous cycle, poverty reduction must start with children. Clearly, giving children access to an integrated package of quality basic social services is one of the most effective and efficient steps we can take to combat the scourge of child poverty.
The department has implemented an integrated substance abuse strategy so as to improve the effectiveness of service delivery and reduce the high incidence of substance abuse. The strategy involves school holiday programmes, the Ke-Moja drug prevention programme, school safety programme, peer educators programme and prison tour educational programme. The approaches employed includes home visits, school visits and counselling to enhance resilience and promote individual strengths.
In combating the high prevalence of substance abuse in the province, the department provided services through 40 substance abuse treatment centres (out-patient and in-patient). A total of 16 989 service users accessed these treatment centres. A further 44 184 youth and children were reached through the Ke-Moja drug prevention programme.
In the year under review, the department provided funding to 21 service sites (shelters) for victims of crime and violence managed by funded NPOs. By the end of March 2012, these shelters and NPOs rendering VEP services reached 39 432 individuals (women and children) affected by domestic violence and abuse. This performance is largely attributed to intensified interventions to address the directive of the 16 days of activism which resulted in greater public awareness and access to the service.
The strengthened partnership and expansion of services between the Department of Community Safety, NPA, SAPS and civil society organisations on programmes such as Thuthuzela centres and Green Door projects also contributed to the higher number. The department, in partnership with other stakeholders, further created and placed a total of 413 women in economic empowerment opportunities.
Dignity packs
More than 150 000 dignity packs provided to girl learners by our department in 2012 have dramatically changed their lives. A cursory survey conducted by the department late last year indicates that the majority of the beneficiaries have regained their confidence, and are no longer missing school.
This means that:
- the rights of the Girl-Child to school and the dignity have been restored;
- the rate of school attendance and scholastic performance have improved; and
- the health and reproductive rights of Girl-Children are upheld.
The project does not only help to keep many girl learners in school but it also provides two women-owned cooperatives that produce and package sanitary packs with sustainable business opportunities. This initiative has created about 100 permanent jobs for women receiving the child support grant.
Honourable Speaker, let's celebrate the number of women we have conferred dignity on by proving them with an opportunity to live "by the sweat of their brow".
Through this project, the department is also catering for the needs of learners with albinism. Every month, we provide 434 learners with albinism with customised packs containing a sun screen, lip balm, hat, lotion and vaseline, including sanitary pads for girl learners.
School uniforms
The school uniform programme benefits children in quintiles one and two schools, as well as those located in previously disadvantaged communities. Each school uniform package consists of a pair of shoes, a shirt, jersey, a pair of trousers or a tunic and a pair of socks.
An independent research study commissioned by the department and conducted among schoolchildren, parents, teachers, schools and cooperatives in 2012 to determine the impact of the school uniform project has revealed that:
- children attended school more regularly, performed better and actively participated in class and extra mural activities;
- economic stigmatisation among learners had been reduced;
- parents experienced reduced financial pressure as they were able to finance other necessities, such as groceries, school fees and transport; and
- unemployed women had the opportunity to develop their sewing skills and earn a living in the cooperatives working with the department on the project.
The study has further indicated that the school uniforms produced by the two cooperatives have enabled many women in poor communities to find employment. The department has also facilitated the sharing of skills among women in these cooperatives. It has further created a spirit of knowledge-sharing, social networking and mutual support between cooperatives, as well as among women in various communities.
Conclusion
I would like to thank the Premier and the Portfolio Committee for supporting our work and our partners outside government for their continued dedication and contribution to the fight against the quadruple challenges of unemployment, inequality poverty and abuse (alcohol and drug abuse and violence against vulnerable groups). The network of stakeholders we have provides us with a firm base of local knowledge as it has improved our understanding of the uniqueness of services required by various service recipients in our communities.
The department reaffirms its commitment to working tirelessly with all stakeholders to deliver on its mandate as a leader in social development.
