We welcome the great strides made by the Children’s Commissioner in the Western Cape, as presented today to the provincial Social Development Standing Committee. In just over four months and with limited resources, Ms Christina Nomdo has successfully engaged and partnered with 35 children government monitors in the province, meeting with these monitors – children themselves – weekly to develop training on the rights of children and how we can address issues that matter to them.
We do, however, recognise the human resource constraints faced by the Commissioner’s office. As the province’s Department of the Premier has made available R8-million for the current 2020-21 financial year, we now look forward to the national Minister of Public Services and Administration’s concurrence for the Commissioner’s organisational structure.
Once this is received in line with legislative requirements, the commissioner may then begin the necessary recruitment and capacitation process with support from the provincial People Management and Branch Strategic Programmes.
As Chairperson of the Social Development Committee in the province, I look forward to this full capacitation for the commissioner’s office and updates on her work in community workshops, beginning with Matzikama this month, as well as her violence prevention initiatives particularly in GBV hotspots.
The DA welcomes the bold vision the commissioner has set up to reimagine and remake childhoods. In the words of one of the Child Government Monitors engaged with in the Western Cape: “The commissioner is here to act as a microphone to amplify the voice of the children of the province”.
