DSD takes to the streets for child protection
Child Protection Week commences today, 29 May until 5 June. It is the culmination of a month-long awareness campaign in which we placed a spotlight on the rights of children.
The Western Cape Department of Social Development (DSD) took to the streets of the beautiful Breede Valley Municipality for the official start of Child Protection Week, by hosting a 10-kilometer relay.
Various stakeholders joined the department and Provincial Minister of Social Development Jaco Londt for the event, including NGOs that work in the child protection space, the local fire department, safety and foster parents, under the theme of “Passing the baton for child protection.”
Elarna Siljeur, DSD social work supervisor said, “Children have the right to be protected from exploitation and harm. We marched to highlight this and to call on communities to protect children, and for them to see who they can go to for help. ‘Each one serves one’, so if someone in the community sees something, they know who to go to for assistance. We need people to report cases of abuse, to either the police or DSD, so that we can assist the child immediately. Reporting can even be done anonymously.”
The event culminated in the lighting of torches at the Boland Park Stadium, symbolising the start of Child Protection Week.
Minister Londt said, “Children represent the promise of tomorrow, they are the architects of a better South Africa. Yet, many of them are confronted daily with circumstances beyond their control such as poverty and family instability. Government alone cannot protect all the vulnerable children in the province, it is simply impossible. Our department needs its NGO partners, municipalities, communities, our residents, and the private sector in this great and important task.”
The department funds 108 Designated Child Protection Organisations across the province that play a crucial role in protecting children’s welfare and providing support services for vulnerable children.
Minister Londt added, “I encourage businesses and residents who are able to assist these child protection organisations, to please support either through donations of for example diapers, formula, school uniforms, or by volunteering your time. There are also many children who are removed from harmful situations by social workers and are then in need of temporary safe care. If you have a heart for helping them, please consider becoming a safety or foster parent.”
For more information, contact your nearest DSD local office, or call the tollfree number 0800 220 250 for more information. You can also find information here: https://www.westerncape.gov.za/social-development/service/fostering-child
Media Enquiries:
Monique Mortlock-Malgas
Media Liaison Officer to Minister Jaco Londt
Department of Social Development