17 Jul 2018

The Central District Council has been applauded for being the first to launch the child protection committees in all its seven sub-districts.

The district is said to have acted swiftly by calling all its sub-districts under one roof to share and educate them on the importance of the committees.

Launching the committees during a one-day workshop, Assistant Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, Ms Botlogile Tshireletso said their main purpose was to ensure implementation of responsive, integrated and comprehensive initiatives for the protection, care and support of children.

Ms Tshireletso said it was now upon the Department of Social and Community Development, as the coordinator, to ensure there were quality standards, that the committees were fully functional and mobilise resources for district activities.

She noted that there were many challenges in the provision of services for children, amongst them being weak coordination at various levels, lack of the spirit of volunteerism, poor networking and information exchange. The assistant minister urged all to work collectively for the sake of the children’s lives.

Though she was cognisant of lack of resources as one of the constraints, she urged them to do their best with the little they had to ensure that they met the needs of children.

Ms Tshireletso said government, through her ministry, had invested a lot in efforts to promote the rights and welfare of the child, which had been well articulated in the Children’s Act of 2009.

She said the act also spelt out the rights and obligations of the various key duty bearers such as parents, service providers and communities.

The government, she said, had already provided unwavering support to various children, including those in need of welfare support, those in need of special care, the HIV infected, school dropouts and the disabled. Ms Tshireletso also said they provided psycho-social support to vulnerable children and their families as well as training parents and the community on child protection services.

It has become apparent that children’s issues should be taken seriously as this is the foundation of life that needs to be nurtured, guided and protected, she said. 

She said it was in view of this that the Central District Council saw it fit to bring together partners to discuss matters that impacted on the lives of children, with much emphasis on participatory, multi-sectoral and decentralised approach.

The workshop was held under the theme ‘It takes a community to raise a child’.   

Ms Tshireletso said the theme prompted everyone to assume responsibility for every child in the society. 

She said in days gone by, it was a cultural norm that orphans and the needy were absorbed within supporting structures such as extended families, where they received all forms of support, be it emotional, educational, financial or moral.

She expressed concern that many children were exposed to risks that compromised their well-being, often they were involved in rapes, employment, drugs and denied access to educational and health services while others were being trafficked outside the country.

The assistant minister also raised concern about the high number of child related cases with some still pending at courts, noting that Central District alone had 335 such cases. ENDS