Child and Family Care

Maintenance Grants :
Parent
Child
Child Support Grant
Foster Care Grants
Special Care Grants

R’000
970 059
349 074
302 467
226 482
22 297

1 870 379

11.3%

51.9%
18.7%
16.2%
12.1%
1,2%

Care for the Aged

Grants for the Aged
Grants for war veterans
Grants-in- aid to people taking care of the aged

9 970 864
63 111
9 572

10 043 547

59.3%

99.3%
0.6%
0.0%

Care for the disabled

4 248 846
60 629
6 649

4 316 124

26.0%

98.4%
1.4%
0.2%

A New Policy Framework
A holistic, integrated policy framework for Developmental Social Welfare Services has been finalised to bring about the transformation of social welfare services in line with the strategic directions of government. The Transformation of the Child and Youth Care System was the first step towards a human development approach in Welfare services.
The vision for developmental social welfare services is defined as:

"Children, youth, women, families and older persons are competent, experience well-being and contribute to an enabling and caring society."

A number of key principles will form the foundation for the transformation and they include the following:

• Empowerment
  The resourcefulness of each child, youth, family, woman and older person should be promoted by providing opportunities to use and build their own capacity and support networks and to act on their own choices and sense of responsibility.
  
• Continuum Of Care And Development
  Children, youth, women, families and older persons should have access to a range of differentiated and integrated services on a continuum of care and development, ensuring access to the least restrictive, least intrusive and most empowering environment and / or programmes appropriate to their individual and therapeutic needs.
  
• Restorative Justice
  The approach to children, youth, women, families and older persons in trouble with the law should focus on restoring societal harmony and correcting wrongdoing rather than punishment. The person should be held accountable for his or her actions and where possible make amends to the victim.
  
• Family Preservation
  All services should prioritise the goal to have children, youth, women and older persons remain within the family and / or community context wherever possible. When a young person, woman or older person is placed in alternative care, services should aim to retain and support communication and relationships between the person and their family (unless proven not to be in their best interests), and to maximise the time which the person spends in the care of the family.
  
• Policy And Delivery Framework
  The framework has four levels of service delivery, with all four levels functioning as a continuum. The continuum across the four levels and within level 4 itself is from the least restrictive, least intrusive and most empowering, to the most intrusive, most restrictive and most empowering for the particular individual. A developmental assessment of the individual is the basis for any intervention. The following focus groups have been identified: children, youth, women, families and older persons.
  
• Level 1: Prevention
  These services include any strategies and programmes which strengthen and build the capacity and self-reliance of families, communities, children, youth, women and older persons.
  
• Level 2: Early Intervention
  These services target children, youth, families, women, older persons and communities identified (through a developmental risk assessment) as being vulnerable or at risk and ensure, through strengths-based developmental and therapeutic programmes, that they do not have to experience statutory intervention of any kind. Early intervention services at level 3 and 4 are aimed at ensuring that no further deterioration takes place, that no further statutory intervention is necessary, and that individuals, families and communities are restored and / or reunified within the shortest time possible.
  
• Level 3: Statutory Process
  At this level the individual has become involved in some form of court case, including placement away from home in alternative care, divorce, persons in trouble with the law who have not been diverted and survivors of crime. Services at this level are aimed at supporting and strengthening communities, families and children, youth, women and older persons and are based on a strong recognition that this is a period of crisis, transition and uncertainty and that a specific range of services needs to be available.
  
• Level 4: Continuum Of Care
  These services range from community based care such as day care, foster care, probation supervision, and home-visitors, to shelters, day treatment centres, weekend care centres, to restricted environments such as prisons, secure care for young people, rehabilitation centres and various forms of residential care. Services on the continuum should be highly effective, delivered from a perspective of prevention and early intervention to ensure no further deterioration, should maximise development and well-being, and should integrate the individual within a family and community context in the shortest possible time.
  
• Integration Of Special Developmental Areas
  The framework integrates special development areas such as poverty alleviation, HIV / AIDS, crime prevention, substance abuse, survivor support and development and disability within each level and across the focus groups of children, youth, families, women and older persons.
  Any service to children, youth, families, women and older persons could be at one or more of the service levels and should ensure that special development areas are integrated where they are relevant to the service participants.

The New Financing Approach
The overall objective of the new financing policy is to rationalise resources, distribute benefits equitably and target beneficiaries more effectively and efficiently; and to correct injustices and imbalances brought about by the skewed allocation of resources. Through this policy, a synergy between services delivered by Government and those by the non-government sector will be built. There ar e about 5500 welfare service providers currently funded by the state versus around 10 000 NGO’s/CBO’s in the Welfare sector.
Within the broader process of governmental budgetary reform, welfare services will be delivered according to a new framework for financing services. Budgeting for service delivery will be output and outcomes-based and will enable the analysis and allocation of resources according to stated purpose and results. The new welfare financing policy has the following aims:

* Meet government’s agenda to address and eliminate the current imbalances in services to citizens.

• Include service organisations previously excluded from receiving financial assistance from the state.
• Target financing to the highest strategic priorities (poverty,rural areas,women and children).
• Promote the equitable distribution of finances, services and infrastructure.
• Include flexible and varied financing options.
• Facilitate the emergence of a network of accessible services for all in need.
• Promote the capacity and sustainability of organisations.

Financing Shifts
The implementation of the policy will necessitate a number of shifts in the way welfare organisations have received funding from the state. These include:

• A shift from per capita financing to programme financing. The present system of financing is based on a per capita subsidy or financing of posts for welfare service organisations. The new policy places the emphasis on the quality and appropriateness of the service delivered.
• A shift from financing specialist organisations and services to financing of holistic serivces with specialist components integrated.
• A shift from financing on the basis of historical entitlement, to financing on the basis of necessary and effective services. This means a move from financing decisions based purely on historical reasons for funding a particular organisation, to financing based on the value of the particular service to the beneficiary community.
• A shift from top-down delivery to a participatory approach. Currently, provincial departments and organisations decide on whether a service is needed or will be provided without the participation of those for whom the service is intended. Using a developmental assesment, full participation of families, communities and individuals should take place.

This approach is already being used in the Make A Difference model (for the transformation of the child and youth care system) and the poverty alleviation projects of the Flagship Programme for Unemployed Women with Children Under Five.

Categories Of Service Delivery And Financing
Three categories of service delivery will be financed in terms of the new policy. These are:

• Direct services
• Policy, management, co-ordination and monitoring of services (support services)
• Capacity building, research and advocacy services (building an enabling environment).

Each category will have generic plus special financing criteria and minimum standards applied to it. Each category will be subject to service level agreements and to developmental quality management assessments. This model will be implemented over a five-year period from April 1999.

The Welfare Services Budget
The two components of the welfare budget are social security and welfare services, with social security accounting for more than 90 percent of expenditure. The allocation to welfare services includes spending on the following programmes:

• Administration.
• Social assistance.
• Social welfare services (payment for services delivered by government and NGOs).
• Social development.
• Population unit.
• Welfare facilities (capital expenditure for new buildings, maintenance and upgrading.)
• Auxiliary services.

In the 1998/99 financial year an amount of R1,6-billion was allocated to welfare services, representing 9 percent of the total provincial Welfare budget.

Provincial Breakdown Of Welfare Services Spending
(Allocation per province for 1998/99)

Welfare Service Allocations By Sector (excluding social security)

* (This includes salaries to provincial officials, administrative expenditure and equipment , etc.)

Management of Ageing
As in other parts of the world, the management of ageing in South Africa is of importance to Government. South Africa is experiencing a phase of demographic change in which the number of people living longer than 65 years of age is gradually increasing. 
According to Census 96, there are 2,8 million South Africans older than 60, which amounts to 5% of the total population. In terms of expenditure, 56% of the total welfare budget was allocated to care of the aged in 1998/99 (that is social security plus welfare services spending).
Historically, services to older persons were rendered mainly in urban areas to a white minority of the population, and was generally expensive institutional care (in old age homes). Of particular concern is the lack of appropriate and affordable services for the frail, destitute older persons in the disadvantaged and rural communities. To address these issues a new dispensation has been introduced.The new dispensation incorporates:

• Appropriate and affordable community-based services with the family as the core support system
• The principle that older persons should age at home or in communities for as long as possible
• Preparation for a meaningful and productive retirement and old age
• Promoting the view that older persons are a valuable pool of knowledge, expertise, skills and wisdom.
• The promotion of an age-integrated society where older persons are full and equal citizens.
  

The approach adopted is that residential care should be for those who are in need of continuous care and no longer able to care for themselves. An instrument for the assessment of frail older people for admission to government-subsidised homes has been finalised and will ensure that only people in need of 24-hour care are accommodated in frail care facilities. In addition, models of community based care are being piloted in a number of provinces.
Since the implementation of this approach, there has been a decrease in the number of government subsidised homes for older persons, from 589 for the 1996/97 financial year to 409 for the 1997/98 financial year, accompanied by a decrease in the number of residents from 33 854 to 28 752 for the two years.
To combat elderly abuse the Aged Persons Amendment Act was passed in 1998 which provides for harsh sentences for those found guilty of elderly abuse and establishes a register of such incidents. The Act also ensures democratic governance of residential care facilities for the elderly and outlaws discrimination in the admission of persons to such facilities. The Department of Health together with a number of role-players is developing a national strategy on prevention of elderly abuse.

The International Year of Older Persons

The United Nations has declared 1999 as the International Year of Older Persons, with the theme "Towards A Society For All Ages". The Department of Welfare, service providers and other stakeholders are observing this year as a unique opportunity to focus on the rights of older persons. The observance of the year is being co-ordinated by the umbrella organisation, Older Persons South Africa ‘99 (OPSA ’99).
The year is of special significance as it is the first time that South Africa participates in an international year for older persons as a fully fledged member of the UN family. As a result, Cabinet in March 1999, endorsed the United Nations Principles on Older Persons adopted by the world body in 1991.

Transformation Of The Child And Youth Care System
In June 1995 an Inter-Ministerial Committee on Young People at Risk (IMC) was established, chaired by the Minister for Welfare and Population Development.
Since 1996 the IMC initiated a set of pilot projects to test the new principles and methods in the Child and Youth Care System. Over 13 000 young people and families have so far been served by these projects. A set of minimum standards has been designed and is aimed at setting bottom line goals for the transformation of the child and youth care system.

The six IMC pilot projects focused on:

• Alternatives in residential care which combine child and youth care practice with wilderness training.
• Family group conferencing to bring together victims of crime, offenders and their families to eliminate the breakdown of relationships as caused by crime
• Family preservation to provide intensive family support, family reunification, youth empowerment and community conferencing
• Prevention and early intervention to offer vocational skills training and family support services and adventure training opportunities
• Professional foster care offering an effective developmental and therapeutic service through community based care rather than institutional care.
• Reception, assessment and referral services to provide assessment and intervention services for arrested juveniles and to divert them out of the criminal justice system.
• One-stop youth justice services which used restorative justice principles to include probation workers and child and youth care workers in its life skills, mediation, family support and diversion programmes.

The finalised pilot projects will be established as Learning Centres to allow policy makers and practitioners to experience the new models in practice, with a view to replicating the programmes within their own contexts. In addition a number of new innovative projects supported by the IMC will be initiated. These will focus on street children, a substance abuse re-education programme, therapeutic art, the role of the natural environment, elders and folklore.

Project Go
This is an inter-sectoral project launched in November 1997 and led by the IMC and Department of Welfare with the task of unblocking the residential care system for young people, in places of safety, schools of industry, reform schools, children’s homes and shelters. Project - Go also aims to assess children and young people who are in conflict with the law and awaiting trial in any residential or correctional facility. Provinces manage this process through their own inter - sectoral structures.
The project has greatly impacted on the lives of children as reflected in the national outcomes for the period November 1997 to January 1999. More than 6 000 assessment reviews and follow-up actions have led to:

• 2 600 children being diverted from the criminal justice system.
• 1000 children moved out of prison through developmental assesment
• 250 children diverted via family preservation.
• 450 children prevented from moving deeper into the system.
• 1600 children returned to their families
• 500 children moved out of places of safety.

The transformation of the child and youth care system is based on a number of principles, including the principle that a child’s best interests are paramount and that a child is best cared for within the family. Where other interventions are necessary the guiding principle is that the child should be cared for in the least restrictive and most empowering environment and that the intervention should take into account his or her developmental needs.
As increasing numbers of children enter into contact with the criminal justice system, the activities of Project Go become increasingly important in providing children with constructive alternatives to a life of crime and incarceration.

Transformation Of Probation Services
In line with the Transformation of the Child and Youth Care System, probation services underwent dramatic changes in 1998. Amendments to the Probation Services were introduced in the National Assembly in February 1999 in line with the accepted recommendations of the 1996 investigation into places of safety, schools of industry and reform schools. The amended Act provides for mandatory assessment of every young person entering the criminal justice system. It will enable welfare departments to appoint probation officers and family finders. The Probation Services Amendment Bill will be re-introduced in Parliament in August 1999.
To upgrade the skills and knowledge of practitioners, the first honours degree in Probation Practice is being offered at the University of Cape Town and a degree in child and youth care for youth care workers is being offered by the Technikon RSA.
Two Probation Services pilot projects under the IMC - where probation officers are primary role-players - have been identified for national roll-out in 1999. They are the Durban Reception, Assessment and Referral Centre and the One Stop Youth Justice Centre in Port Elizabeth.
In addition 38 new posts have been created since January 1998 and 321 probation officers deliver a service on a full-time basis, while 580 social workers deliver probation services on a part-time basis.

Secure Care
As result of the prohibition against keeping children under 18 awaiting trial in prison, the Department of Welfare initiated the establishment of secure facilities in all provinces. Secure care facilities are for the care and containment of young people while awaiting trial on serious offences because they may pose a danger to themselves and society.
Approximately 77% of the original RDP allocation of R33m has been spent on the building and upgrading of secure care facilities in all nine provinces:

• Eastern Cape (R3,5m) - the Enkuselweni Secure Care facility was opened in July 1997.
• Gauteng (R2,8m), - the Walter Sisulu Child and Youth Care Centre was opened in April 1997.
• Free State (R5,9m), for the Kroonstad secure care facility
• Northern Province (R1,0m), for the facility in Pietersburg.
• KwaZulu/Natal(R4,0m) for the Excelsior facility in Pinetown.
• North West - the province’s facility in Brits is complete
• Mpumalanga - Phase I of the Hendrina Child and Youth Care Centre is complete
• Western Cape - existing facilities were upgraded
• Northern Cape - the Molehe Mampe Secure Care Centre was opened on 10 December 1998
  
  Work is continuing on designing and providing appropriate care and development services to young people, widows and orphans.

Child Care Legislation
The Child Care Amendment Act, Act 96 of 1996 commenced on 1 April 1998 and an information guide to facilitate the implementation of the amendment was published in September 1998. The main purpose of the amendment was to regulate the provisions relating to the adoption of children. In March 1999 a further amendment to the Child Care Act was passed to outlaw the commercial sexual exploitation of children. In terms of the Act persons who procure children as commercial sex workers and those who allow their premises to be used for such activities are liable for prosecution.
The South African Law Commission‘s Project Committee on the Review of the Child Care Act aims to draft comprehensive child care legislation instead of having many statutes dealing with various issues. The committee launched the First Issue Paper in May 1998 and held consultation workshops on the Issue Paper in all provinces.
The aim of the paper was to elicit discusions and recommendations on issues such as the scope of the comprehensive Child Care Act, alternative family environments, rights and responsibilities of parents, children in especially difficult circumstances and the harmonisation of the legislation with the socio-cultural, religious and constitutional context as well as its alignment with the U N Convention on the Rights of the Child and the African Charter on the Welfare and Rights of the Child.
The second consultation process which focuses on selected areas such as child protection, children living with AIDS, street children, alternative care, local authorities and child care forums and social security commenced in March 1999 and it is expected to be followed by a Discussion Document and draft legislation. The intention is that comprehensive childcare legislation will be tabled before parliament in the year 2000. The Department of Welfare participates actively in this process.

National Plan of Action for Children
Parliament ratified the United Nations (UN) Convention on the Rights of the Child on 16 June 1995. In accordance with the provisions of the Convention, the State must accept responsibility for promoting and upholding the rights of children.
The Cabinet identified and mandated seven government departments, NGOs and other service providers including the Department of Welfare to develop and implement a National Plan of Action (NPA) for Children for addressing the commitments to children. All programmes designed for children must be aligned with the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the goals of the 1990 World Summit for Children and the Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP).
The NPA forms part of the Government’s attempt to prevent and combat the neglect and abuse of children. The NPA is a long-term process for implementing actions for the survival, protection and the development of children in South Africa.

Child Abuse And Neglect
The Department established a working group to develop a strategy for addressing child abuse and neglect. The final strategy document was submitted to the Department in 1997. During 1998/99, the provinces with the assistance of the working group have embarked on the process of developing integrated protocols for child abuse and neglect. By the end of 1998/99 most provinces had finalised the protocols which provide guidelines for service delivery. In terms of the Regulations of the Child Care Amendment Act, (Act No. 96, of 1996), the Department has developed a National Child Protection Register which commenced on 1 April 1998.

Child Emergency Service
In the early 1980s the Child Emergency Service was established by the former House of Assembly as a toll-free counselling service to children experiencing various difficulties. Because of the need to align services with the realities of South African society, an evaluation of the Child Emergency Service was conducted. It was found that the service had several limitations, including language constraints of the counsellors, as well as duplicating services provided by other agencies. The provision of such a direct service was also not compatible with the functions of a national department which constitutionally has to focus on policy formulation, legislation and monitor and evaluate social welfare services. On 31 March 1999 the Child Emergency Service was discontinued.

Registrar Of Adoptions
Legislation governing adoptions requires that a register of adoptions be kept. The Registrar of Adoptions, located in the Department, is responsible for registering all adoptions in South Africa, keeping an information, referral and tracing service for adult adopted persons requesting information or contact with their biological parents or biological families requesting information about the adopted person. During the period January 1998 to February 1999:

• 2 535 new adoptions were registered.
• 87 enquiries were dealt with by the International Social Service.
• 2 004 origin enquiries were received.

Foster Care
The Department of Welfare is exploring the introduction of Professional Foster Care to provide the most appropriate and least restrictive placement for children who are at risk and difficult to place in a traditional foster care environment. Professional Foster Care is a form of statutory placement focussing on strengths and value-based practices as recommended by the policy guidelines on the Transformation of the Child and Youth Care System.
A Draft Discussion Document on Foster Care which seeks to set minimum standards for foster care has been prepared and is available for comment. According to latest figures, 65 860 children were in 43 998 foster homes supported by a foster care grant.

Integrated Justice System (I.J.S)
The present criminal justice system has to be transformed into a modern , efficient, effective and integrated system. Extensive international and local studies were conducted and a public tender was awarded at the end of 1997 for the design of an Integrated Justice System. The Department of Welfare, together with Justice, DCS and SAPS, comprise the core IJS departments.
The IJS Project impacts on probation practitioners, residential care personnel ,provincial information managers and national department personnel participated in over 20 workshops to define the activities, issues and blockages in the 6 core processes viz: crime reporting and investigation, arrest, prosecution, adjudication, incarceration and community corrections. 146 issues and blockages were identified.
Solution programmes were identified to address the blockages. Welfare identified 5 cross departmental and 3 departmental quick fix solutions. The Probation advocacy Group is the provincial mechanism to facilitate the unblocking .
The Model developed at the Stepping Stones One Stop Youth Justice Centre Project in Port Elizabeth has been recommended for national roll out.
It is being regarded as a truly South African model for an integrated youth justice system, based on the developmental approach and in line with the philosophy and principles underpinning the transformation of the child and youth care system.
Department of State Expenditure allocated R14,85 million to Welfare for improvements in the Criminal Justice System. The allocation will be used for replication of the one stop youth justice centre model, especially in the more rural areas of specific provinces, and to do an architecture study to determine the most appropriate welfare technology infrastructure to support the IJS.

Survivor Support
Under the National Crime Prevention Strategy, the Department of Welfare is the lead department for the Victim Empowerment Programme (VEP) to provide support to survivors of crime and violence.Previous policy approaches and services have neglected the rights of survivors and resulted in insufficient services for them.

Victim empowerment is essential for:

• Making it possible for a victim to heal and move from the crime with the least possible harm or loss, and
• Ensuring that the victim is empowered to contribute to a process of restorative justice by entrenching internationally accepted basic victim’s rights as agreed upon by the United Nations (the right to be treated with respect and dignity, to offer information, to receive information, to obtain legal advice, to be protected, and to compensation)

Empowering victims contributes towards crime prevention in that empowered victims:

• Help to convict offenders so that they cannot commit more crimes,
• Help with the investigation by reporting the crime and making a statement,
• Help with the prosecution and sentencing of the offender by being a witness for the state,
• Are less likely to continue the cycle of violence, as a victim who has contributed to a successful conviction of the offender feels that justice has been done and is not left with feelings of anger and wanting to take revenge,
• Are informed because they have been given supportive access to the system and know what is expected of them and how and why they can best contribute to the process.
• Will encourage more people to believe in the process of law and justice and make the proposed integrated justice system credible and efficient.

Given the intersectoral nature of the NCPS and the policy development orientation of the national Department of Welfare, a number of key initiatives are being driven by the VEP team.

• A Victim’s Charter, which will embody the rights of victims of crime and violence is being drafted by a Committee of the South African Law Commission.
• The first comprehensive crime survey - conducted by Statistics South Africa - and sponsored by the Department of Safety and Security, indicated how victims experience victimisation and the extent of the need for victim services. This survey will be conducted every two years.
• The Victim Empowerment Programme has been strengthened at provincial level by the appointment of provincial project managers throughout the country.
• For the first time in our country’s history, over 400 delegates from all over South Africa gathered in Kimberley in June 1998 to discuss practical initiatives to empower victims. Several criteria were identified to measure the success of the Victim Empowerment Programme. These include services which are available and accessible, services rendered in an empowering, respectful and supportive manner, effective co-ordination and integration of services, and the provision of all the necessary information on services available, the progress of the related criminal investigation and the relevant information on procedures and processes to victims.
• During 1998/99 a number of new 24-hour services were established or existing services expanded through funding from the VEP. Many of these services operate on a 24-hour basis and are staffed by volunteers who will undergo the necessary training. See table on page 37 for some of these service.

Substance Abuse
During 1998 a Drug Master Plan was developed by the Drug Advisory Board, which is a statutory body appointed by the Minister for Welfare and Population Development. The Drug Master Plan will act as the blueprint for South Africa’s response to the problems of drug abuse and trafficking and will set out South Africa’s policies and priorities in the campaign against substance abuse. The Drug Master Plan was approved by Cabinet on 21 October 1998 and was the culmination of extensive public consultations in all nine provinces during 1998. It was tabled in Parliament in March 1999.
A central recommendation of the Drug Master Plan is the establishment of a Central Drug Authority to replace the
Drug Advisory Board. The Prevention and Treatment of Drug Dependancy Amendment Act, No. 14 of 1999 makes provision for the appointment of a Central Drug Authority.

Transforming Services For People With Disabilities
The vision of the Department of Welfare is equal opportunities for people with disabilities. This will be achieved through promoting and facilitating the social integration of people with disabilities.

In the past year two initiatives were embarked upon:

• A Parent / caregiver empowerment programme, which will enable parents to be more responsive to the needs of children with disabilities. A pilot project involving 25 parents was launched in Shayandima, Venda, in September 1998.

The pilot project under the auspices of the Disabled Children Action Group (DICAG), aims to provide the Department with:

• A replicable and cost effective community-based Early Childhood Development (ECD) service delivery model
• Policy guidelines for community based services and support.
• Facilitation of the socio-economic empowerment of people with disabilities.

The major thrust of this project initially is to:

• Analyse existing policies relating to disability services.
• Assess existing protective workshops subsidised by the Department of Welfare, with specific attention to their financial sustainability, management and career pathing or prospects for people with disabilities.

In the second initiative, two studies were undertaken by the Medunsa Organisation for Disabled Entrepreneurs (MODE). Reports on the studies are available from the Department.
The fundamental transformation of protective workshops is one of the key instruments towards socio-economic empowerment of people with disabilities. It is also necessary to take cognisance of the recommendations made by the Community Agency for Social Enquiry (CASE) study into the provision of disability grants.
One of the objectives of commissioning these reports is to align Welfare services with the recommendations contained in the White Paper for the Integrated National Disability Strategy (INDS), and to work in collaboration with the Office on the Status of Disabled Persons (OSDP). Disability is a rights issue and all government departments must take their share of responsibility in promoting the social and economic integration of disabled persons in society.
The work that has commenced is important in facilitating non-discrimination as demanded by the Constitution, and promoting equal opportunities as demanded by the United Nation’s 22 standard rules. The INDS, as the national policy guideline on disability, further recommends areas in which the Department must be actively involved. The transformation of social welfare services will build a strong focus on the integration of people with disabilities in society.

A Partnership Against AIDS
The White Paper for Social Welfare emphasises the needs and concerns of people living with HIV/AIDS.
It has been projected that the HIV epidemic in South Africa will increase in the next five years and will reach a plateau between the years 2005 and 2010.
According to a national survey of pregnant women attending public health service antenatal clinics in 1997, 16,01 per cent of the women were infected.
The AIDS crisis poses a number of special challenges in the field of social welfare as it will impact on social security and community based models of care and support. The Department is involved in piloting such models. During 1998/99 a Social Welfare Plan on AIDS was finalised and approved to serve as a framework for the next five years to all welfare constituencies to enable them to develop strategies to address HIV/AIDS according to their specific needs.

The Social Welfare Plan on AIDS has five strategic foci:

• Reducing the prevalence of HIV/AIDS through targeted preventive interventions
• Managing the impact of AIDS on social security
• Developing affordable community based care and support models
• Forming strategic alliances (partnerships)
• Developing appropriate policy to enhance service delivery.

Community Based Models Of Care
The Department of Welfare is involved in the piloting of two projects.
The first is CINDI (Children in Distress) in KwaZulu Natal. This is a network of social welfare agencies and other stakeholders who are developing models which will provide:

• The best possible quality of upbringing for large numbers of orphans within communities profoundly affected by HIV/AIDS;
• Rapid identification and placement of orphaned, abandoned and abused children into these models of care;
• Economic self-sufficiency for people who care for orphans - especially families headed by the aged and by children; and
• Motivation and support for people and organisations involved in social service delivery to communities profoundly affected by HIV/AIDS.

The second is the Kerux care and intervention programme for children and families affected by the AIDS epidemic. Kerux is an integral part of the professional health care service at Kalafong Hospital and Pretoria Academic Hospital, working amongst people infected and affected by HIV/AIDS.
KERUX was recommended in the recently published National AIDS Review as being an ideal combined hospital/community/
NGO model of care for people living with AIDS. At the end of 1997, KERUX provided a wide range of care interventions to 2 000 HIV positive children and over 4 000 infected adults and their families.
Of the 4 000 adults, two thirds were women. The outcome of this pilot project would be a holistic, integrated and sustainable community-based care and support model.

Vusa Isizwe - Restore The Nation

The Women’s Partnership Against Aids was launched in March 1999 under the theme: Vusa Isizwe - restore the nation.
This campaign is established on the premise that women are more vulnerable and susceptible to AIDS because of their low economic and social status in society. The Women in Partnership Against AIDS supports initiatives aimed at promoting public awareness, prevention, voluntary disclosure, family care and training against HIV/AIDS.

Conclusion
The vision for Developmental Social Welfare service in short, means a new deal in respect of Welfare Services for children, youth, families and older persons Considering the limited priority weighting given to children and the status of older persons, the question asked is whether the process made to democratise South Africa made any difference to the lives of children, youth, families, women and older persons. Although some changes can be seen, not enough changes are felt at grass roots level.
The Department therefore commits itself to accelerate the transformation process and ensure effective service delivery.

Survivor Support and Development Projects

The new organogram is based on the following strategic thinking:

The Department is responsible for ensuring the design of policy and legislation to chart new directions in the delivery of services to citizens. Current welfare legislation requires a comprehensive process of review. While a number of amendments have been effected to key pieces of legislation in the past four years, these amendments dealt largely with the critical issues of ensuring equal rights to welfare services for all citizens and some improvements in the nature and quality of services.

The Department is now entering a phase where the pressing needs of service delivery require a new policy and regulatory environment. For example, social assistance legislation must ensure that the issues of universal access to services, a clearer definition of disability in terms of who qualifies for social grants, effective financial governance for grant payments and measures to reduce fraud and corruption are addressed in policy and legislation. As the regulatory environment changes, the operational environment will have to keep pace and new human resource knowledge and skills will be required.

A flatter organisational structure with more high-level posts and the recruitment/training of staff with high level policy and management skills are also indicated.

The corporate institution of the Department of Welfare has a R16,7-billion budget for social assistance (FY1998/99), increasing in size in the order of 4% every year. The largest proportion of this expenditure is in old age pensions – 67% of budget.

Every month 2,9 million South African citizens receive social assistance grants through this financial system. Part of the operation of the Department can therefore be seen as akin to a large banking or financial operation. While the actual payment of grants is effected in provinces, the national Department still retains overall responsibility for the efficiency and effectiveness of payments.The Department will, in collaboration with provincial departments seek a strategic business partner for the redesign of the grant payment system and management of transfers to NGOs and CBOs through publication of the tender for the Welfare Payments and Information Service.

Given the size of the welfare budget (R18,7bn), the quality and calibre of financial management is of particular interest. In addition to grant payments and transfers to the non-governmental welfare services sector, the department procures a wide range of services from both the private sector, as well as other government agencies eg. The state I.T Agency, Government Communication and Information Service. The Department must protect its investment in these external resources through effective procurement measures.

Furthermore, a strong audit function is required to ensure that the internal financial controls are well designed and fully functional and that government gets value for money, both in terms of personnel and operational expenditure.

In order to achieve the objectives and outcomes envisaged in the relevant policy, legislative and operational frameworks, a thorough review of current business processes and management practices is needed. This will require a review of management practice at both the macro- or strategic level, as well as at the micro- or operational level. Turning a business around requires a team with highly developed and focused knowledge, skills, tools and methodologies of business management and the application of innovative management techniques.

The Department of Welfare is a key institution of democratic government and operates within a complex web of institutions and institutional relationships. Communication across this network of government and non-governmental organisations is of paramount importance. In particular, the Department must communicate on a regular basis with the institutions of the National Parliament.

The quality of this communication must be of a high standard.

The structure will have to be supported through, inter alia the following key organisational principles:

• A strong customer-service orientation
• An outcomes-based approach to service delivery
• An emphasis on strategic management of the wide range of tasks
• Effective change management techniques to consolidate a new style of management and work
• A project management approach to all projects, whether large, complex and long-term or short in duration
• The re-engineering of internal work procedures

Organisational Review Process

Building on earlier restructuring in the Department, the Director-General has led a process of strategic work design and organisational restructuring which has arrived at four (4) strategic focus areas:

• Anti-poverty strategies and programmes
• Transformation of welfare services
• Designing an integrated social security system/service
• Special developmental areas such as
• HIV/AIDS, substance abuse,survivor support and others

These strategic focus areas are an intepretation of the mandate of the Department of Welfare.

An initial brainstorm (October 1998) as to the new shape of the organisation uncovered certain structural weaknesses, in particular the delinkage of policy, strategy and legislation, the lack of innovative management techniques and practices, the absence of core skills in information management and technology, and the poor financial governance arrangements.

An interactive discussion with the ministerial team resulted in a further refinement of the new structure (November 1998).

During December and January, the management team debated and negotiated the finer elements of the structure and functions of each component of the proposed structure.The new organogram reflects all these discussions.

The organogram reflects many of the constraints that the Department is working under. In particular, the personnel budget is very limited. A number of innovative measures will therefore be employed to address the capacity needs.

These measures will include access to short-term project management resources through Project Management Services (Department of Finance); the contracting in of a panel of financial experts through the R200m conditional grant for the improvement of social security arrangements; and creative use of the operational budget.

The review took note of the recommendations of a number of reports including the Report of the Presidential Review Commission and the Report of the Committee on the Restructuring of Social Security.

Organogram

The new organogram for the Department of Welfare has three branches:

Branch: Policy, Strategy and Regulation

This branch is responsible for the design and review of policies, strategies and legislation relating to the welfare mandate. It will lead and guide the implementation of all projects and programmes in the distinct yet related areas of social security, social development and welfare services. It will also perform the function of integration management, in other words ensuring that the overlaps and interlinkages between programmes are identified, analysed and managed. It will ensure that blockages to effective policy implementation are identified and addressed in a problem-solving manner. It will identify key issues for the agenda of the Minister and MINMEC to ensure that political decision-making is supported.

The organogram creates a directorate for legal services which is justified in relation to the wide-ranging legislative programme of the Department as well as the need for an advisory service to provinces. The Director post will be filled in the FY1999/2000.

The organogram creates three Chief Directorates (Social Development, Deve -lopmental Welfare Services and Social Security).

The Chief Directorate Social Development will design and facilitate the implementation of a broad anti-poverty strategy for welfare, with cross-linkages to other governmental anti-poverty programmes such as Working for Water, job summit commitments, etc.

The Directorate Public-Private Partnerships will focus on building partnership arrangements in colloboration with the social security and the welfare services sector, and will design innovative financing models for widows/orphans.

The Chief Directorate Developmental Welfare Services establishes three fields of services – for children, youth and families; women and older persons.

Branch: Business Management Re-engineering

The branch will also design a training strategy for the broader welfare sector (both governmental and non-governmental). The branch will promote the repositioning of the organisation and ensure that new management ideas and practices are constantly being introduced.

Branch: Information, Payment and Transaction Services

This branch will become the centre of the information and communications capacity for the Department. One of the major requirements for effective delivery of welfare services is communication with the customer/citizen, either directly or via the public media. The grant payments function can also be enhanced immeasurably through the appropriate application of information and communications technologies. The organogram establishes the post of Chief Information Officer, as envisaged in the recommendations of the Communications Task Force or COMTASK, at Deputy-Director-General level.

The branch has a limited number of staff who will be responsible for the design and procurement of communications and information services, as well as the project management of any agreements/partnerships entered into with the private and non-governmental sectors. The proposed organogram creates two Chief Directorates – Communications, and Information Management and Technology.

The component includes a public relations function and a public information service. The component will be required to design the content of all information and communications to the public, as well as promoting the use of the widest range of communications media – including broadcast, print and multi-media computer applications. The embryonic public help-desk function currently being tested at national and provincial levels will be developed and separated from the technology control and command centre function.

The Chief Directorate : Information Management and Technology

It will facilitate the design of information and technology architecture and the procurement of infrastructure and applications to support the communications and payments processes. It will project manage the competitive bid and the implementation of the agreement to establish a Welfare Payments and Information Service. It will consider and make recommendations for access to value-added services for citizens receiving social grants. It will ensure effective design of information systems (including Management Information Systems), standards for such systems and quality assurance in line with the needs of the business.

Chief Directorate: Financial and Procurement Services

Ideally, this component should be situated at the level of a branch. However, the personnel budget forces certain choices and it has not been possible to create the post of DDG in the current MTEF cycle (FY1999/2000 – 2001/2002). The establishment of a Budget Committee, with all programme managers responsible for the financial management of their particular personnel and operational budgets, as well as for any special votes on their programmes is one measure to improve the quality of financial management for the Department.

 In order to promote the effective functioning of the Budget Committee and attention to the needs of provinces for improved financial management and accounting, a tender will be awarded for a panel of financial experts to assist the department with bedding down financial systems.This tender will be in place for a maximum period of two years from the date of award.

The responsibility for accounting for programme votes will be delegated to programme managers in writing in terms of section 6 of the "Guideline to Accounting Officers"– Appointment of additional accounting officers.

The procurement function will be responsible for ensuring compliance with all tender procedures and for drafting and negotiating contracts, project charters and service level agreements with business partners.

Directorate: Internal Audit

This component will promote the effective management of all resources, through evaluating and designing effective internal controls. It will also ensure compliance with all statutory or regulatory requirements and ensure that the Department does everything necessary to avoid negative reports from the Auditor-General. In particular, it will propose measures for the restructuring of the Disaster Relief Fund.

Directorate: Parliamentary and Secretariat Services

This component will perform the liaison and secretariat function for the accounting officer with regard to management of the department-ministry relationship, the parliamentary accounting function, the secretariat service to the MINMEC and DCDSS, as well as general oversight of intergovernmental relations. Staff will also ensure that all key meetings held by the accounting officer are duly recorded and held on record. In addition, the forwarding and tracking of documentation between programmes and the office of the Director-General will be managed here.

Directorate: Ministerial Services

This component services the Minister directly and reports to a Director. The directorate has some relative autonomy from the department, however, it is the duty of the Director to ensure that all public service regulations are applied and reported on to the accounting officer as and when required.

National Population Unit

The National Population Unit is a distinct entity from the Department of Welfare. It has a distinct mandate, vision and mission. The NPU is established at the level of a Chief Directorate. The current structure of the NPU will be reviewed though the matter has not been dealt with during the current organisational review process.

Some initial proposals include the need to consider the constitution of the NPU as a statutory agency reporting to the Minister of Welfare and Population Development.

In the interim, a number of measures are being considered to enhance the status and productivity of the Unit.

The new organogram simply creates direct reporting lines between the Chief Director (NPU) and the Director-General (Welfare). The two parties will work to ensure stronger interlinkages with other departments and civil society.

The Department of Welfare and the NPU has a total establishment of 414 posts with a personnel expenditure of R34 477 653 (FY1998/99). The total number of posts on the new organogram is 388 and the personnel budget for FY1999/2000 is

R34 644 000 including general salary adjustments. Given constraints on the personnel budget, not all the posts on the new organogram can be filled in the FY1999/2000.

In addition, the establishment of an Audit Committee with external expertise will ensure that any problems are identified and resolved timeously.

Chronology Of Transformation

In 1994, several critical challenges faced the new social welfare function. These included inequitable service provision, fragmentation of services and services which failed to meet the development needs of the people. The past five years have seen the development and implementation of policies and programmes to address these weaknesses.

 The following summary provides a chronological overview of some of the achievements of the Department of Welfare over the past five years:

1994 .....

• A separate national Department of Welfare was formed in July 1994, after splitting from the then national Department of Health. There are now nine provincial Departments of Welfare, exercising concurrent powers with the national Department.
• Co-operative governance was advanced through the establishment of the Minister’s Committee for Welfare and Population Development (MINMEC) and the Departmental Committee for Developmental Social Services (DCDSS). The DCDSS comprises the heads of the national and provincial welfare departments.
• All policies and legislation introduced by the Department since 1994 were geared towards phasing out disparities in social welfare programmes.

1995 .....

• Consultations on a White Paper for Social Welfare began in 1995. The White Paper was approved and gazetted in 1997. There is now widespread agreement and commitment in the welfare community to achieving the vision, mission and objectives of developmental social welfare.
• The process to develop a population policy started with a Green Paper in April 1995 and the White Paper on Population Policy for South Africa was gazetted in April 1998.
• An investigation into the transformation of the child and youth care system commenced and resulted in a policy framework as well as the implementation of successful pilot projects throughout the country.
• The transformation of social security began with the process to amalgamate the 14 different systems that existed pre-1994. This process was completed in 1997. Initiatives were also introduced to reduce fraud and corruption. Beneficiaries are being re-registered in order to ensure clean and accurate data. Backlogs in the processing of applications for social security grants have been reduced and customer service is improving.

1996 .....

• Policy and programme shifts were initiated in 1996 to transform welfare services, with specific reference to the management of ageing; the transformation of the child and youth care system; probation services; services for people with disabilities and HIV/AIDS; the upgrading of secure care facilities; the implementation of the National Plan of Action for Children; and the formulation of comprehensive child care legislation.
• The National Interim Consultative Committee on Developmental Social Services (NICC) was established in 1996 to assist in the establishment of a legitimate, participatory national governance mechanism to promote consultation on major issues in social welfare. Later in 1999, legislation for a permanent governance structure for the welfare sector will be finalised.
• An investigation into the creation of an enabling environment for non-profit organisations began in 1996 and culminated with the promulgation of the Non-Profit Organisations Act in 1997. This Act creates a more enabling environment for the non-profit sector, by removing the need for state authority to fundraise and emphasising good governance.
• An investigation into the provision of social assistance to children living in poverty commenced in 1996. The outcome of this investigation was the introduction of the Child Support Grant (CSG) - a cash benefit for children under the age of 7 years – in 1998.
• In July 1996 the Department launched the Flagship Programme for Unemployed Women with Children under the age of 5 years as part of its strategy to alleviate poverty and to implement the new developmental paradigm as stated in the White Paper for Social Welfare. A total of 15 income-generating projects are operating.

1997 .....

• A draft Social Welfare Action Plan (SWAP) was developed to provide a framework to implement the White Paper. The SWAP was finalised at the end of 1998.
• The Drug Master Plan was released in November 1997 and provides a comprehensive framework to combat drug abuse and drug trafficking.
• A Social Welfare Action Plan on HIV/AIDS was developed to focus the role of the welfare sector in addressing this epidemic.
• Consultations on a new Welfare Financing Policy began in 1997. In 1999 a policy on the financing of social welfare services delivered by non-governmental organisations was finalised.
• The process to develop a Departmental Policy on an Emergency and Relief Fund began in 1997 and was finalised in June 1998. This policy is linked to the White Paper on Disaster Management.
• A model for the costing of social welfare services was developed in 1997.
• A conditional grant of R200 million allocated to the national Department to upgrade the financial management and administration systems in the welfare function, will enable a shift to a more equitable allocation of the welfare budget between social security and social welfare services.
• The transformation of the former Interim Council for Social Work began in 1997 and culminated with the establishment of the South African Council for Social Service Professions in 1999.
•  Capacity building programmes for middle and senior managers in national and provincial welfare departments; the transformation of curriculum for training institutions; and the reorientation of serving social workers began in 1997. A Human Resource Development Summit in 1998 provided the stepping stone towards the development of an integrated and holistic human resource development strategy for the welfare sector.
• Welfare was appointed the lead Department for the Victim Empowerment Programme (VEP) under the National Crime Prevention Strategy (NCPS). A number of 24-hour services for survivors are being established and existing services will be expanded.
• The Department accessed R50 million from the Poverty Alleviation Fund and supported 1 133 development projects through these funds. A total of 93 090 poor people benefited directly. In 1999, 2 015 projects received funds from the R203 million poverty allocation .

1998 .....

• An investigation into the delivery of welfare services by Local Government was undertaken and will be finalised. Provincial departments are developing models of delivery at local level in both a rural and urban context.
• A review of the provision of social security to the disabled commenced.
• The public welfare sector committed itself to allocating 20% of its budget to social welfare services and 80% to social security. Data mining and clean-up operations within social security are intended to generate savings.
• In 1998 early warning financial systems were introduced. These systems are meant to assist departments with the management of their budgets and allows for the pro-active management of possible over-expenditure.

1999 .....

• The National Population Unit started with the formulation of the National Action Plan to Implement the population White Paper.
• The Department is involved in a project partnership with Starfish 2000 Trust to provide work experience to graduates and matriculants by placing them with participating companies.
• As part of the preparations for the fifth anniversary of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD), held in Cairo in September 1994, the ICPD+5 Country Report for South Africa was compiled and tabled in Cabinet during January 1999.

Social Welfare Indicator Index 1996/97

TOTAL 1060584

Welfare Facilities
Children’s Homes 13565
Places of Safety 3019
Creches 180046

Community Projects
Street Children 1365
Children 68075
Women 38140

TOTAL 1060584

Older Persons/Disabled/Aids and No. of Clients served
Neglected Elderly 3245
Abused Elderly 1032
DISABLED 000
HIV/AIDS 3030

TOTAL 7307

Social Security
Old Age 1737682
War Veterans 12047
Disabled 732322
Grant in Aid 10082

TOTAL 2704850

 Social Welfare Indicator Index 1996/1997