Z Skweyiya: Child Protection Week

29 May 2006

MEC for Social Development
Councillors and leaders of the community
Members of the civil society
Community members
Representatives from the media
Ladies and Gentlemen

It is an honour for me to join members of the community of Alex which
remains the bedrock for our fight for socio economic rights for the most
vulnerable.

Today we mark the first day of Child Protection Week, this will give us an
opportunity to reflect on our achievements as a nation. Such reflection will
also award us an opportunity to recommit ourselves to working even harder to
protect and develop our children, as government, communities and all
stakeholders, including Non Governmental Organisation (NGOs) and the religious
sector.

In 1994, South Africa ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights
of the Child. In so doing, the country committed itself to implement the
principle of putting children first. We also have the Constitution,
legislation, policies, the African Charter as well as United Nations
Conventions to guide us in meeting this important development objective.

Since 1994, Government has introduced a host of policies and programmes to
protect children from vulnerability. As a result of these, more than seven
million children now receive the Child Support Grant, while more than 330
thousand children receive Foster Care Grants.

We will accelerate delivery in all areas aimed at child protection, as
directed by significant pieces of legislation such as the Children and Sexual
Offences Bills.

Child Protection

Programme Director, in the past, one of the key challenges had been
Government�s limited knowledge of which children have been abused or neglected
by which care giver and/or community member. Through the Child Protection
Register we anticipate that we will have all this information at our finger
tips. This will ensure that policy makers and implementers are enabled to
ensure improved service standards, financial planning and human resources
allocations. Our ultimate aim is to close gaps in service delivery. To
effectively do so families and communities must take responsibility. In
recognition of this fact we have selected �Caring Communities Protect
Children�, for this year�s Child Protection Week theme. We therefore encourage
increased usage of the register to report incidents of abuse.

To facilitate for the taking up of such responsibilities by communities, an
army of community and social workers will be required. Thus we have finalised
the Retention Strategy for Social Workers and will soon finalise a similar one
for all social service professionals. These steps are aimed at improving the
material and working conditions for our social workers and social service
professionals.

We will also in the coming years begin to encourage young graduates and
matriculants to take up opportunities in this field.

Early childhood Development (ECD)

We will also ensure, as we have already done with Umsobomvu, that our
contribution to AsgiSA and the Expanded Public Works Programme, (EPWP),
benefits unemployed young people.

Through the EPWP we have already identified such opportunities in the Early
Childhood Development and Home and Community Based Care sectors. We will, and
have already begun with our attempts to ensure that the numbers of ECD
professionals are increased. These efforts will be complemented by the increase
of government-subsidised ECD facilities from the current three hundred and
thirty thousand and thirty six (330 036). The ECD programme ensures that
children are better prepared for formal schooling, and builds their confidence
and self-esteem. Let me therefore take this opportunity to salute the staff and
volunteers who run this centre, the Child and Family Training and Resource
Centre, for having been pioneers in qualitative Early Childhood
Development.

Orphans and Vulnerable Children

Programme Director, over the past few years we have witnessed an increase in
the numbers of vulnerable children. The ultimate result, in some instances, has
been the phenomenon of child headed households.

Since we as a Continent have intertwined destinies, we must develop
collective actions so as to impact positively on our own regional and global
development. It is with this in mind that South Africa, in July this year, will
host a Southern African Development Community (SADC) conference on Orphans and
Vulnerable Children in the North West province.

The conference will provide a discussion forum and facilitate for action to
substantially improve the lives of Orphaned and Vulnerable Children in our
region. Once again, I would like to reiterate that this phenomenon, cannot be
addressed unless each and every one of us commits to caring for at least one
vulnerable child, within or outside our families.

Adoptions

I would therefore also like to take this opportunity to salute those who
have opened their hearts and homes to vulnerable children. Since April last
year, we have registered two thousand two hundred and fifty six (2256) domestic
adoptions, and two hundred and fifty one (251) inter-country adoptions. We
trust that many more will come forward to take the opportunity to give needy
children a solid foundation in life.

Substance abuse & Children in Conflict with the Law

Our country continues to experience increased levels of substance abuse and
child criminality. A worrying trend is that first time substance and drug users
are now between the ages of nine and ten. Even more worrying are that criminal
offenders are also getting younger.

These signal that we ought to take radical steps which steps must return us
back to the basics and ethos of our African culture. We must, on one hand, take
collective responsibility for raising children and, on the other hand,
strengthen our legislative environment. It is with the latter in mind that we
will present the first draft of the Legislation in Substance Abuse Prevention
and Treatment. The new Legislation will promote greater community involvement
and community based services, whilst placing greater emphasis on preventative
services. It will also be more sensitive towards the needs of children who are
often the victims of unscrupulous drug dealers and pushers.

We will also strengthen our diversion programmes which ensure that instead
of processing children through the normal justice system they are placed under
specialised diversion programmes. In the last year, approximately 30 000
children have been diverted from the criminal justice system, through
agreements with the National Prosecuting Authority, provincial departments of
Social Development and NGO�s.

Conclusion

Let me close this address by recalling the statement by former President
Nelson Mandela's on the occasion of Democratic South Africa�s first celebration
of International Children's Day. On 1st of June 1994, former President Nelson
Mandela said:
�I wish to take this opportunity to reiterate the commitment of the South
African Government to a comprehensive programme to ensure that children of our
country grow up secure in family life, enjoying all the rights and privileges
they deserve. . . On this day, we also extend our solidarity with children
throughout the world whose lives are ravaged by the scourges of hunger, war and
ignorance. We commit ourselves to contribute, to the best of our ability, to
the international efforts aimed at resolving these problems.�

As we celebrate this year�s Child Protection Week, I take the opportunity to
reiterate in word and deed, these commitments.

I thank you.

Issued by: Department of Social Development
29 May 2006