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PURPOSE

PRESENTATION ON CHILD CARE AND PROTECTION SERVICES TO THE PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE 24 JANUARY 2007 CHIEF DIRECTORATE: CHILDREN. PURPOSE. To brief the Portfolio Committee on the following pertaining to policies and programme for children: Situational analysis Legislation

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PURPOSE

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  1. PRESENTATION ON CHILD CARE AND PROTECTION SERVICES TO THE PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE24 JANUARY 2007CHIEF DIRECTORATE: CHILDREN

  2. PURPOSE • To brief the Portfolio Committee on the following pertaining to policies and programme for children: • Situational analysis • Legislation • Child Abuse Neglect and Exploitation • Alternative care • ECD • Adoptions and International Social Services (ISS) • Orphans • Children Awaiting Trial • Related policies • Challenges • Opportunities

  3. Situation analysis • Population of children in the country– 18,9m; • Children’s rights not adequately provided in existing legislation; • Children and orphans made vulnerable by HIV and AIDS, poverty and unemployment; • Child abuse, neglect and exploitation; • Children in conflict with the law; • Children working and living on the street;

  4. POPULATION OF CHILDREN

  5. Estimation of Orphans and Vulnerable Children using vital registration data

  6. LEGISLATION FOR CHILD CARE AND PROTECTION The broad framework for protection includes: • UN Convention on the Rights of the Child; • African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child; • SA Constitution (No 108/96) – Chapter 8; • Child Care Act (No 74 of 1983); • Children’s Act (No 38 of 2005); • Children’s Amendment Bill

  7. Existing Programmes • Social Welfare Services to children; • Services to orphans and vulnerable children delivered through home community based care/ HIV and AIDS programmes; • Social Security • Foster Care • Child Support Grant • Care Dependency Grant

  8. Policies and Programmes for Children • Child Care Legislation; • National Policy Framework; • Monitoring and evaluation mechanism for legislation; • Policy Framework and Strategy for Prevention and Management of Child Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation; • National Child Protection Register (CPR); • Early Childhood Development Programme and Expanded Public Works Programme; • Alternative Care; • Adoptions; • International Social Services; • Orphans and vulnerable children; • Children working and living on the street; • Children in conflict with the law; • Family Policy;

  9. Intersectoral Collaboration • Steering Committee on the children’s bill • National Child Protection Committee • Children’s Committee • NACCA: National Action Committee on Children Affected by HIV&AIDS • NPA for Human Trafficking & Sexual Offences • Office on the Rights of the Child • ECD forum • HSWS: Heads of Social Welfare Services • HSD: Heads of Social Development • ISCCJ- Intersectoral Committee on Child Justice

  10. Child Care Legislation • Children’s Act (No 38 of 2005) • Children’s Amendment Bill processes • Costing of the Children’s Bill • Implementation plans • Development of regulations • Development of the National Policy Framework • Development of the monitoring and evaluation system • Training guidelines • Implementation plans • Norms and standards

  11. Policy Framework and Strategy on Child Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation • Ensuring an effective and holistic delivery system; • Ensuring an intersectoral and interdisciplinary approach; • Ensuring the development and implementation of minimum standards; • Providing an appropriate legal environment; • Ensuring monitoring and evaluation; • Promoting and facilitating research and information management; • Ensuring capacity building and training; • Ensuring the provision of adequate resources; • Mitigating the risk factors associated with child abuse, neglect and exploitation;

  12. Progress • Implementation of the policy and strategy by continuing provision of major services to children as outlined in the policy • Costing of the Policy • Provincial strategies and implementation plans • Development of the National Protocols • Development of Norms and Standards • Training on child protection • Surveillance system and research • Development of policy for children working and living on the street • Child trafficking and child abduction • National Child Protection Committee

  13. National Child Protection Register (CPR) • Web Based Wireless Pilot Programme completed in WC, handed over to National; • CPR system upgraded at National in preparation to roll out the web base in 8 provinces; • 4 provinces appointed data captures and 4 provinces in process; • National circular approved and circulated; • EC incorporating CPR in their community based IMS;

  14. Early Childhood Development Programme and Expanded Public Works Programme • It covers ages 0 – 9, critical formative years to invest in children, to give them a head start; • 2006/07 provinces received R65,3 million; • Subsidies increased to an average of R7.00 per day per child ranging from R11.00 in KZN to R4.50 in EC; • 310,311 children currently subsidized; • ECD guidelines launched on 1st June 2006 during Child Protection Week; • Training manual on guidelines developed; • Integrated ECD Plan (Tshwaragano ka Bana) jointly develop with the DOE and DH;

  15. Early Childhood Development Programme and Expanded Public Works ProgrammeCont… • M&E framework in process of approval; • 30 master trainers trained on Parenting Programme; • Low literacy training manual developed on the parental programme; • 24 officials trained at national and provinces on M&E;

  16. Alternative Care FOSTER CARE • Currently 378 748 foster children in 247 705 foster families; • About 60 000 known cases awaiting foster care placement; • Draft Foster Care strategy to address foster care backlog; • Research on Foster Care currently in process; • Contract social workers appointed in provinces i.e. E Cape, Gauteng and KZN to address backlog; • Working agreement with DOJ to prioritize Children's Court inquiries; • Exemption of OVCs from paying for birth certificate fees; • Improvement to be introduced by Children’s Amendment Bill proposals;

  17. Alternative Care Cont… RESIDENTIAL CARE • Study conducted in 2003 indicates approximately 245 registered Children’s Homes only four are state owned; • An audit of children’s homes is currently in process with provinces; • Consultative meetings to take place with provinces regarding gaps and challenges with regards to minimum standards and developmental quality assurance (DQA); • Review and update of draft minimum standards for approval; • Review and update of draft Developmental Quality Assurance tool for approval; • HIV & AIDS unit developing a HIV/AIDS management programme for children in residential care;

  18. Adoptions • The new Children’s Act 38 of 2005 has two chapters on local and intercountry adoptions; • A register of prospective adoptive parents and children to be developed; • Qualifying adoptive parents to have access to grants; • Ensure placement of children within the country before considering intercountry adoption endorsed at the National Conference in September 2006; • Judgment against guardianship orders at the Johannesburg Supreme Court; • Strategy for an awareness and recruitment drive to promote adoption as the ultimate alternative e.g pamphlets develop and distributed • Interim Central Authority to be formalised;

  19. Adoptions • Close working relationship established with NGOs doing adoptions; • Guidelines for Intercountry Adoption drafted for consultation; • The Hague meeting on Guidelines and accreditation of organizations attended September 2005 and draft guidelines developed; • In 2006/01 to date: National 1500 Intercountry: 155 = 1655 Adoptions • In 2005/06 National: 2252 Intercountry: 268 = 2520 Adoptions • In 2004/05 National: 2278 Intercountry: 256 = 2534 Adoptions

  20. International Social Services (ISS) • Affiliation to the ISS Bureau; • Affiliation connecting the department to international network for ISS; • 471 active cases referred by other countries; • Initiating training of provincial staff on ISS; • Ongoing information sharing with newly appointed diplomats at DOFA;

  21. Children working and living on the street • Intersectoral task team established; • Draft Policy being reviewed and updated by April 2007; • Provincial departments providing financial support to shelters;

  22. Challenges • Shortage of social workers at provincial level; • Shortage of staff at national; • Specialisation; • Intersectoral collaboration; • Allocation of adequate resources to services to children; • Lack of information management system; • Lack of monitoring and evaluation system; • Alignment of priorities; • Disparity amongst provinces • Appropriate funding for NGO especially for statutory services; • Prevention Programmes

  23. Opportunities • New Child Care Legislation; • Service Delivery Model; • EPWP funding from Treasury to provinces; • Upgrading of Social Workers; • New funding from treasury; • Upgrading to Chief Directorate Children and creation of new directorates; • Strengthened intersectoral collaboration with NGOs and partner Departments; • Support from international NGOs; • Progress made in the establishment of the monitoring and information management systems;

  24. Other related policies • Service Delivery Model; • Financing Policy; • Victim Empowerment Programmes; • Drug Master Plan and Policy on Substance Abuse; • Intersectoral collaboration; • Youth development strategy;

  25. Orphans and other children made vulnerable by HIV and AIDS

  26. Background Over the past years there has been an increased AIDS related mortality in the adult population;The Department undertook a study to estimate the number orphans and vulnerable children using the vital registration data from Home Affairs;Preliminary findings indicate that there are 650 000 orphans and vulnerable children in South Africa;The data is based on registered death and births available from Dept of Home Affairs since 1994;

  27. Departmental Response • Partnerships with stakeholders and strong community mobilisation to assist communities to support affected individuals and families; • Provide psychosocial care and support to families and individual family members; • Coordinate community support efforts to the family as a whole while recognisisng the specific needs of individuals; • Expand Home/Community-Based Care and Support and build capacity among NGOs,CBOs and FBOs; • Assist individuals and communities to start and sustain income generation projects;

  28. Key Strategic Areas of Intervention recommended from the Conference • Coordination of government, civil society organisations,NGOs, donor and development agencies to maximise impact of interventions • Strengthen and supports the capacity of families affected by HIV and AIDS(psychosocial care and support, wills, succession planning, early identification) • Ensures that legislation, policy, strategies and programmes are in place to protect the most vulnerable families

  29. Policy Implications • Social services part of the country’s broader development agenda • Provide psychosocial care and support to families and individual family members • Focus of social services is to build social cohesion and social integration of the poor and vulnerable into the mainstream of society • This call for intervention strategies that are adjusted to respond effectively to family and community needs

  30. Key Strategic Areas of Intervention cont….. • Establishment of comprehensive Monitoring and Evaluation system for HCBC • Capacity Building of NGOs to enable them to respond to the burden of the epidemic on families and community as whole • Ensure that intervention programmes contribute to strengthening family integration (family preservation) • Expand and monitor HCBC and other interventions • Promote destigmatisation of HIV and AIDS within families and offer support group assistance

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