International Children’s Day: Child Protection Week calls on us to end abuse

As we mark International Children’s Day and Child Protection Week, the Western Cape Department of Social Development (DSD) will continue to prioritize the fight against child abuse.

The Department has allocated R694-million this year to tackle child abuse, neglect and abandonment, which is the largest share of our budget.

This funding allows us to provide 807 departmental social work professionals who specialize in child protection and other child services rendering services to the poorest communities.

The incidents of abuse and violence against children continue to shock society. In the 2017/18 year the department received the following number of reported cases;

Violence against children should have no place in our society, and I condemn these incidents. However government cannot do it alone, parents continue to play the most important role in ensuring children are safe, and protected.

The theme for this year’s Child Protection Week is, “Child Protection is Everyone’s Responsibility”.

The Department continues to call on parents and the public to report any cases of child abuse to a social worker at any our local and regional offices or by contacting the DSD hotline on 0800 220 250.