Social Development Deputy Minister Hendrietta Bogopane-Zulu, in partnership with Airports Company South Africa and CIPLA Foundation, has handed over a R4 million day care centre to the residents of Greenfield in Kimberley, Northern Cape.
The handover on Monday was part of government’s efforts to accelerate service delivery through public private partnerships (PPP).
During her address, the Deputy Minister thanked the Sol Plaatjie Local Municipality for availing land and water by constructing the newly built day care centre for the benefit of children.
“We thank both National and Provincial Departments of Social Development for their relentless efforts in ensuring that children are put first. It is befitting to also extend a word of appreciation to team ACSA, which has partnered in funding many programmes previously and most recently contributed towards the building of Kutlwano Day Care Centre,” Bogopane-Zulu said.
One of the parents, whose child is attending at Kutlwano Day Care Centre, Janice Brown, said she was delighted that children in the area will have a new crèche, which is a safe environment and suitable for children to learn and grow.
“The centre caters for our needs and provides a sense of love and care. The facilities of the crèche are in a safe and good condition for our children to play and learn without being exposed to any form of danger,” she said.
The centre was once a corrugated iron shack and was now refurbished into a disability-friendly facility.
Meanwhile, on Tuesday the Deputy Minister will facilitate an engagement with sex workers, government, civil society, developmental partners and the general public about challenges that continue to face the sex work trade.
The Department of Social Development calls for the decriminalisation of sex work as criminalisation poses a myriad of challenges against interventions designed for sex workers.
The department said that criminalisation of the trade is intricately linked to the ongoing human rights violations and inadequate access to social, justice and health services.
The sex work dialogue will take place this morning at the Platfontein Lodge, in Kimberley, Northern Cape.