Deputy Minister, Department of Social Development, Mma – Ntuli
MEC for Social Development, Mme Sisi Ntombela
Executive Mayors Present
Mayors and Councilors
Director-Generals and Head of Departments present
Our Beloved Children
Ladies and gentlemen
Let me take this moment to reflect on the great loss we have experienced as a country last week. We have lost leader in the death of Mama Albertina Sisulu. We will always remember her for her selfless contribution to the struggle for freedom and gender equality in our country. She was also equally passionate about the well-being of children of our country. She raised and mentored many leaders of our country.
Today, we say thank you Mama Sisulu for being such a great mother to our nation.
Programme director, we are gathered here today to mark the end of the Child Protection Week Programme for 2011. We launched this programme in Johannesburg on 30 May under the theme: “Working Together to Protect Children”
Since the beginning of the Child Protection Week, we have witnessed a number of activities throughout the country aimed at increasing awareness about the need to protect and promote the rights of children.
Amongst the many interventions highlighted during the Child Protection Week, was the launch of the Early Childhood Development (ECD) programme on 1 June, coinciding with the observation of the International Children’s Day.
We encourage all unregistered ECD Centers to register with the Department of Social Development. This is essential to ensure that these centres provide appropriate environment and services that contribute to the development of children. Registration also enables these centres to access a subsidy of between R9 and R15 per day per child enrolled in that facility.
As we mark the end of the Child Protection Week for 2011, we are also turning our focus to children living and working in the street. We know that these children face many difficulties particularly at this time when we are experiencing very cold weather across our country.
Today, we are launching the Strategy and Guidelines on Children Working and Living in the Streets. This Strategy provides guidance on the services and programmes to be rendered to children living and working in the streets.
The phenomenon of children living and working in the streets is worldwide. However, the precise number of these children is difficult to quantify accurately due to constant changes in the status of affected children. UNICEF estimates that there are about 100 million children living and working in the street worldwide. The majority of these children are in developing countries.
Children living and working in the streets are a manifestation of the problems which children and families experience in communities as a result of social and economic factors, leading to their marginalisation. While some vulnerable children may be protected through social assistance and child care services provided by government and non-governmental organisations, other children are not detected.
It is against this background that government, through the Department of Social Development, developed a policy framework which will guides government and other stakeholders to respond adequately to needs of children at the risk of living or working on the streets as well as those who are already in the streets.
The Strategy focuses on:
- Prevention and early intervention to reduce risks
- Protection of children already on the street
- And reintegration of these children
Together with prevention, early intervention before the child has been on the streets for a long time is key to our success to address this challenge. In cases where children have already committed minor offences whilst on the street, restorative justice system (or diversion programmes) is encouraged.
Children who are already in the street have immediate needs that cannot be ignored and efforts should be made to protect their holistic well-being. We need to address critical health issues such as hygiene and nutrition, substance abuse and protect against accidents and sexually transmitted infections including HIV. Many children living and working in the street require professional counseling and emotional support and we therefore need to make therapeutic services easily accessible.
Reuniting a child with his or her family is the most desirable outcome. But this have to be in the best interest of the child and it should be done with the child’s active participation. In some cases the child can, as an interim measure, be placed in alternative care such as foster care or residential care.
The strategy we are launching today is an important tool for coordination of our effort to prevent marginalisation of children and to assist those who are already living and working in the street. Let us use this strategy to protect our children.
The end of the Child Protection Week today does not mean we stop protecting and advocating for the rights of children. Instead, this Week should become just one milestone in our sustained efforts to protect our children from violence and abuse.
Let us all be vigilant and report cases of child abuse. Let us all take responsibility of protecting our children. Working together, we can protect our children.
Thank you.
