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27 May 2008

Chairperson
Honourable delegates
Ladies and gentlemen

I am singularly honoured and privileged to be given this opportunity to address this conference on ‘Getting South Africa ready to implement the Children’s Act,’ as it brings to fruition work that has been a decade in the making. Yes, it has been ten long years since work initially began on the Children’s Bill. In the meantime the conditions facing the children of South Africa have deteriorated, sometimes with added complications. It is therefore with great gratitude and honour that I stand here today to inform you that the Children’s Act of 2005 and the Children’s Amendment Act of 2007 are ready for implementation. Finally, we are on the home stretch to realising the constitutional rights of our children. It is thus particularly gratifying to launch this year’s Child Protection Week.

The theme of the Child Protection Week is ‘Getting South Africa ready to implement the Children’s Act.’ This is in acknowledgement of the fact that for a long time we could not protect our children adequately against abuse and violent acts. Therefore, we are celebrating a new dawn this week, hoping that this legislation will be properly implemented and we will achieve its intent of protecting the rights of our children.

The protection of children is one of the priorities of the South African government. The protection of children’s rights lead to an improvement in the lives of other sections of the community. It is neither desirable nor possible to protect children’s rights in isolation from their families and communities. South Africa is fortunate in that it does accord constitutional protection to children’s rights in Section 28 of the Constitution and as a signatory to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) both of which make provision for the survival, health, social security, protection and development of children. The Children’s Act thus gives effect to these national and international instruments binding on our country.

The Freedom Charter as adopted by the people’s Congress in 1955 directs all of us, including our youth to “Love [our] people and their culture, to honour human brotherhood, liberty and peace”. I am afraid the events over the past two weeks are far from that ideal many of our brothers and sisters paid the supreme price for. I must therefore pause, bow my head in shame and take this opportunity to reiterate our position that we cannot tolerate the scourge of xenophobia sweeping our country. It is with added distress that we note that children are once again bearing the brunt of such violence, losing parents and loved ones, as well as their homes and being forced to flee for their lives.

Setting alight the homes of foreigners has also set aflame our Constitution and taken a match to the Children’s Act. Let me remind you all that Section 1 of the Children’s Act defines a child as a person under the age of 18 years. It does not add any additional requirements such as South African citizenship or that the child had to be born in South Africa. This means that foreign children are offered the same protective measures in terms of this legislation whilst they are in South Africa. Foreign children may be placed in temporary safe care and Children’s Court enquiries may be opened in order to determine whether the child is in need of care and protection. If the Court finds a foreign child to be in need of care and protection the Court will have the same options to order the future care situation of the child. This means that foreign children may be admitted to Child and Youth Care Canters or be placed in foster care in order to serve their best interests.

We as the Department of Social Development have acted swiftly to provide individuals and families with blankets, food and other necessities as part of the Social Relief of Distress programme. In implementing the Children’s Act it is vital that we reinforce the need to honour this legislation and ensure the protection of all children within our borders.

In its aims the Children’s Act seeks to:
* stipulate principles relating to the care and protection of children
* define parental responsibilities and rights
* determine principles and guidelines for the protection of children and the promotion of their well being
* regulate matters concerning the protection and well-being of children
* consolidate the laws relating to the welfare and protection of children

In advancing these the Act promotes:
* the preservation and strengthening of families so as to give effect to the constitutional rights and obligations towards children
* specifically family care or parental care or appropriate alternative care in cases where children are removed from their families
* the provision of integrated social services for all children
* the protection of children from maltreatment, neglect, abuse or degradation and
* the best interest of a child as the most paramount concern of our society

It further makes provision for structures, services and means for promoting and monitoring the sound physical, psychological, intellectual, emotional and social development of children. The strengthening and development of community structures, to assist in providing care and protection to children is also one of the main objectives of this Act.

To advance care and protection the Act provides for a two part child protection register. Part A of the register has a record of all reports of abuse or deliberate neglect of a child, all convictions of all persons on charges involving the abuse or deliberate neglect of a child, all findings of a children’s court that a child is in need of care and protection. Part B of the register is to have a record of persons who are unsuitable to work with children and to use the information in the register in order to protect children in general against abuse from these persons.

Another important provision is that an alleged offender could be removed with a written notice from the home or place where the child resides. It is in the best interest of the child not to be removed from the home or place where the alleged abuse took place, as the child is in a vulnerable position and should stay in familiar surroundings. A variety of professional people for example teachers, medical practitioners, psychologists etc, must on reasonable grounds, report a child who has been sexually abused, neglected or abused in a manner causing physical injury.

The legislation also makes provision for any person who believes that a child is in need of care and protection because of abuse, sexual abuse or deliberate neglect may report that belief to any child protection organisation, social development social welfare services offices and to the police for investigation and eventual referral of the abuse to a children’s court.

The Children’s Act relies on community-based services that support children and their families. Our strong focus on Early Childhood Development (ECD) has again been vindicated by “The Growth Report: Strategies for Sustained Growth and Inclusive Development.” Released last week by the Minister of Finance and the Commission on Growth and Development, the report revealed that fast sustained growth is not a miracle; it is attainable for developing countries with the “right mix of ingredients.” Importantly on the issue of education and skills development the report found that equality of opportunity and gender inclusiveness were necessary to bring the benefits of globalisation to those not yet actively participating in the economy. This probe found that, for instance, adequate nutrition among infants and children is crucial to the equalisation of opportunity, allowing children to benefit appropriately from educational systems and to then bring this capacity to the workplace.

Our ECD programme aims to ensure that the care of infants and children is paramount and we thus aim to equalise the subsidy at a minimum of R9 per child, per day in each province. We hope to subsidise 600 000 children in the current financial year. In the long-term this will provide the foundation to lift children out of poverty.

Programme director, poverty is a major cause of children becoming separated from the safety and protection of their families. Poverty is a major cause of child separation and lifting a family out of poverty can make the difference between a child growing up in a loving family environment or growing up frightened and alone. The Act aims to alleviate this by providing for alternative care like foster care and child and youth care centres.

More than six children may be placed in foster care in terms of a cluster foster care scheme which provides for the children to be grouped in houses accommodating not more than six children per house or such other number of children per house as the court may determine.

Child and youth care centres must offer therapeutic programmes which may include:
* reception, care and development
* temporary safe care of children pending their placement
* protection from abuse and neglect
* care and protection of trafficked or commercially sexually exploited children
* observing and assessing children
* providing counselling and other treatment and
* assisting children to reintegrate them with their families and communities

Child and youth care centres must have management boards and no person unsuitable to work with children may be appointed or continue to serve at a child and youth care centre.

The Act lastly provides for drop-in centres managed for the purpose of providing services, excluding overnight accommodation, to children including children living, working or begging on the streets. Drop-in centres must provide outreach programmes, as well as prevention and intervention programmes.

Programme director, United Nations Children's Fund's (UNICEF) ‘Children and AIDS: Second stocktaking report', highlights the importance of providing AIDS affected and infected children with adequate protection, care and support services. United Nations and AIDS (UNAIDS) estimates that 1.2 million children in South Africa have been orphaned as a result of AIDS. The Children’s Act recognises the vital role played by child-headed households and stipulates that the provincial head of social development may recognise a household as a child-headed household if:
* the parent or care-giver of the household is terminally ill or has died
* no adult family member is available to provide care for the children in the household and
* a child has assumed the role of care-giver in respect of a child in the household.

Allow me to emphasise the intersectoral nature of the Act and the importance of working together in the best interest of our children. The Act treats the matter of services to children as a priority and directs all of us in the various spheres of governance to do the same. Consequently, we should strengthen local level services and support to children. The litmus test of this will be the budget provisions we make towards these objectives. We must also do so in a manner that promotes child participation as well as the enhancement of the capacities of the children’s sector. To advance this we will require the support of the private sector and the broad civil society.

Resources required to implement the Act will be provided in terms of an approach that recognises the existence of competing social and economic needs, without compromising the best interest of children. Our own costing indicate that 75% of the initial costs at provincial level have to be borne by the Department of Social Development with the remainder being split between the Departments of Justice and Education. We have allocated R22 million in this financial year for the implementation of the Act.

To facilitate for implementation, draft regulations will be published in June 2008 for comment. I urge all of you to comment on the draft regulations so as to ensure successful planning and preparation for the implementation of the Children’s Act. This Act is one of the foundation Acts of Parliament to protect our children and to ensure actions in the best interest of families and children.

In conclusion, dialogue between government and civil society forms a sound basis for the protection of children and service delivery. This conference is convened specifically to create the essential synergy in the preparation for the implementation of this legislation. I want to emphasise the fact that government cannot deliver services without the support of civil society.

Each one of us attending today is instrumental in making a difference in children’s lives and together we can protect and care for our children. Together we can ensure that we build a caring society.

Thank you.

Issued by: Department of Social Development
27 May 2008