Gontse Sekhantso
Social Development Minister Dina Pule has called for children’s voices to be placed at the centre of efforts to strengthen child protection as government renews its focus on preventing violence against children.
Pule was speaking on Thursday at a two-day Children’s Summit on Ending Violence Against Children at the ANEW Hotel in White River, Mbombela, Mpumalanga.
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Held under the principle “Nothing About Children Without Children”, the summit aims to ensure that children directly contribute to recommendations and commitments on issues affecting their safety and wellbeing.
The summit forms part of the Department of Social Development’s activities for October, which has been designated Social Development Month, and is also intended to contribute to South Africa’s preparations for the Second Global Ministerial Conference on Ending Violence Against Children.
Pule said the decision to begin the department’s month-long programme with a children’s summit reflected the importance of addressing the needs of vulnerable children.
“The Department of Social Development is responsible for children and responsible people with disabilities. This time around, today, we will showcase the work that we do for the vulnerable people that we are responsible for, but we chose to start with the children’s summit,” Pule said.
She said the summit followed discussions at the First Global Ministerial Conference on Ending Violence Against Children, held in Bogotá, Colombia, in 2024.
South Africa was among seven countries that made national commitments to focus on specific areas of child protection, including the safety of children in online spaces.
Pule said the increasing use of smartphones and digital platforms by children had created an urgent need to strengthen protection against online abuse.
“South Africa was among the seven that we said we were going to look at. We’re trying to check if children are not going to be abused online,” she said.
“We know that children have smartphones and they communicate with them.”
The focus on online safety comes as children increasingly use digital platforms for communication, education and social interaction, creating additional spaces in which they can be exposed to abuse, exploitation, intimidation and other forms of harm.
The summit is expected to produce child-informed recommendations and strengthen cooperation between government, civil society, communities and other organisations involved in child protection.
According to the World Health Organization’s Global Status Report on Preventing Violence Against Children 2020, one in two children experiences some form of violence during childhood.
The scale of violence against children means prevention requires coordinated action across government, families, communities and organisations working with children.
For South Africa, the summit places child protection within the department’s broader social-development agenda, which includes efforts to reduce poverty, strengthen families and address the rising cost of living.
The department has said Social Development Month will include outreach activities across the country aimed at engaging communities on issues affecting vulnerable people and strengthening families.
The Children’s Summit, however, places a specific focus on violence against children and the need for children themselves to participate in decisions concerning their protection.
The “Nothing About Children Without Children” principle is intended to ensure that children are not treated only as recipients of protection policies, but also as participants in discussions about the challenges they experience.
The two-day gathering brings together stakeholders to consider how child protection responses can be strengthened and how existing commitments can be translated into practical action.
Among the issues receiving attention is the changing nature of risks faced by children, including those associated with digital technology.
While technology provides children with opportunities to communicate, learn and access information, it can also create avenues for harmful interactions and exploitation.
The summit is expected to contribute to South Africa’s preparations for the upcoming Second Global Ministerial Conference on Ending Violence Against Children, where countries will assess progress and consider renewed commitments.
Pule said the department would use October to showcase and strengthen programmes aimed at supporting vulnerable people, with children among those receiving particular attention.
For South Africa, the summit provides an opportunity to place the experiences and priorities of children at the centre of national and international commitments to ending violence against children.
The recommendations emerging from the summit are expected to inform future policy, programmes and accountability measures aimed at protecting children both in their communities and in the increasingly digital environments in which they live.
