Programme Director
Members of the Mayoral Committee
Councillors
Representatives of NPOs and Faith Based Organisations
Other Organs of Civil Society
Members of the Community & Media
Distinguished Guests
Senior Managers and other officials present
It is a great pleasure and honour to address this year’s closing provincial event for the 2012 Social Development Month under the theme “Longevity: Shaping the Future”.
We are once more recommitting ourselves:
- To advocating for children’s rights, and reminding our communities about their responsibility towards protecting and caring for children.
- To reducing incidents of Child Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation through awareness campaigns and other means of protecting children.
- To informing and educating the public on the comprehensive basket of services needed by children for their emotional, cognitive and physical development.
In fighting child poverty through Early Childhood Development (ECD’s) programme we are implementing various programmes. It is important to note that the Early Childhood Development Programme is a major intervention implemented to foster the early development of a child, and it serves as an intervention in promoting access to quality basic education. The programme is meant to influence children’s later school success, social and emotional competence, verbal, intellectual and physical development during early childhood.
This programme also serves as a poverty and safety measure in respect of children. Through this programme the Gauteng Provincial is gradually making strides towards the principle of universal access to Early Childhood Development. Our commitment to increasing access to ECD services is affirmed by the opening of this new state-of-the-art Early Childhood Development facility which accommodates 120 children. During the construction stages of this facility we created 491 job opportunities in line with government’s programme of job creation.
The numbers of jobs created for the different categories of beneficiaries are as follows: 216 jobs for the Youth, 156 for Men and 116 for women, including 3 job opportunities for People Living with Disabilities.
We have to create more jobs through our Social Infrastructure Investment Programme so that more families can realise the benefits of our liberation struggle. Building the infrastructure to create wealth and to create positive social changes and values that last for the next generations is important. As this would eradicate the inter-generational cycle of poverty. In order to achieve this we have to ensure that our programmes are responsive to the needs and aspirations of our communities.
In its efforts to promote good quality education and a safe learning environment, since the 2009 General Election, our government has achieved the following in the ECD sector:
- The construction of 16 ECD sites which resulted in the extension of the department’s services in previously disadvantaged areas.
- The provision of funding support to a total of 979 registered ECD sites managed by NPOs. As a result of this service extension, a total of 244,307 children between the ages of 0-4 years accessed the ECD programme.
Furthermore, our interventions focusing on the provision of school uniform and psychosocial services to school children located in previously disadvantaged areas resulted in the following:
- Distribution of school uniform packages in the form of shoes, shirts, jerseys, trousers, tunic and socks to a total of 180 000 deserving children at the cost of R 98 million. It is targeted that for the current financial year (2011/12) 100 000 more children will benefit from the school uniform programme.
We are investing more in this programme because we know that when poverty strikes a family, the youngest members are the most vulnerable. Biological and intellectual growth cannot wait until a family escapes from poverty. These children run the risk of becoming the next generation of poor. In order to transform this vicious cycle into a virtuous cycle, poverty reduction must start with children. Clearly, giving children access to an integrated package of basic social services of good quality is one of the most effective and efficient steps in combating child poverty.
To this end the department has embarked on an intensive programme to invest in children and their educators. The following is being addressed in a phased in approach.
- Educational toys have been purchased for crèches in the poverty pockets
- A standardised nutritional menu will be implemented from the 1st November in some of the crèches
- Occupational health and safety training has started in 250 crèches (fire drill and first Aid Training). Training started on the 29 October throughout the province
- Fire ball, fire extinguishers, smoke detectors, fire blankets and evacuation plans will be provided to further ensure the safety of our children, and
- Furthermore, we have partnered with the Independent Development Trust to do minor renovations at some of the crèches.
We are also investing more in this programme to ensure effective financial management as we have employed 84 young bookkeepers at some of the facilities to provide training to the owners and managers of the crèches, in areas such as financial planning and bookkeeping.
Furthermore, we are investing in the technological infrastructure. We have thus been able to purchase and provide computers for the bookkeepers and the children. The children will be exposed to a wide range of learning material through visual presentations, and they will use a specific keyboard and CDs which will enable them to enhance their scholastic performance and the learning outcomes. Additionally, the principals will be able to use these computers for record- keeping and related management functions.
In conclusion, investment in children today is the best guarantee of equitable and sustainable development for tomorrow. Evidently, serving the educational needs of children at an early age will enable the country to succeed in its quest to produce requisite high level skills, knowledge and values required for creating safe and sustainable communities, and the economic challenges of the 21 century and beyond.
The creation of a common value system and an environment promoting positive social changes would enable us to eradicate the violence plaguing our communities. Above all, it would assist our society to develop a cohort of responsible young men and women with the potential to improve our country’s standing in the global economy, rather than individual who will spread harmful social ills that are a serious threat to the society.
Dankie. Ngiyabonga.
