CHILD PROTECTION MONTH LAUNCH HIGHLIGHTS RISING CHILD ABUSE CONCERNS

By Precious Mupenzi

• ⁠Child Protection Month launches amid concerns of rising child abuse incidents.
• ⁠According to SAPS statistics, crimes against children continue to escalate, with increases noted in cases of sexual offences, assault, and abduction.
• Despite the grim figures, South Africa’s efforts to protect its children are aligned with broader international movements.

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As South Africa observes Child Protection Month this May launched in Thaba Nchu in the Free State on Sunday, the country finds itself at a critical juncture, grappling with rising cases of child abuse even as it reaffirms its commitment to global and continental efforts to end violence against children by 2030.
This year’s national commemoration under the theme: “Working together in ending violence against children” comes as South Africans are still reeling from heart-wrenching cases such as the rape ordeal of a seven-year-old child known as Cwecwe, and the ongoing search for missing six-year-old Joshlin Smit.

These cases, alongside the latest quarterly crime statistics released by the South African Police Service (SAPS), which highlight a disturbing surge in child violence, have cast a grim shadow over the commemorative activities.

According to SAPS statistics, crimes against children continue to escalate, with increases noted in cases of sexual offences, assault, and abduction. These figures paint a sobering picture of the status of children in the country and underscore the urgency of the commitments South Africa has made on various global platforms.

Speaking ahead of the launch of Child Protection Month, Neliswa Cekiso, Director of Child Protection at the Department of Social Development, revealed that for the 2023/24 financial year, the National Child Protection Register (NCPR) recorded 23,732 cases of child abuse and neglect.
This figure surged to 26,852 cases for the 2024/25 financial year, and Cekiso warned that the number is likely to rise further once the last quarter statistics are included.
The reported cases span sexual abuse, deliberate neglect, physical abuse, emotional abuse, and abandonment.

“What we are seeing is deeply concerning. And we must also recognise that these reported cases are only the tip of the iceberg, as there is still significant underreporting of child abuse in our country,” Cekiso cautioned.

She further highlighted SAPS statistics for July to September 2024, which recorded 190 cases of rape involving children. Alarmingly, 77 of these took place at schools, 15 at tertiary institutions, eight at day-care centres, and two at specialised schools. Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal emerged as hotspots, recording the highest numbers of rapes at schools, with 16 and 13 cases respectively.

The brutal reality of child murder was also laid bare, with SAPS crime statistics showing that between April and June 2024, 243 children were killed in South Africa. In the same period, over 11,000 cases of Assault with Grievous Bodily Harm (GBH) against women were opened, further underscoring the broader crisis of violence against vulnerable groups.

Despite these grim figures, Cekiso emphasised that South Africa’s efforts to protect its children are aligned with broader international movements.
“South Africa is among the nations that have endorsed the Bogota Commitments to end violence against children by 2030. Our national frameworks, including recommendations from the Children’s Summit, are not isolated—they resonate with global pledges and standards,” she said.

The Bogota Commitments call on countries to implement comprehensive national action plans, invest in prevention, and ensure that children’s voices are central to policymaking. For South Africa, this means integrating the children’s report recommendation of Pillar 7—focused on creating a child-friendly justice system and ensuring support services—into the revised National Strategic Plan on Gender-Based Violence and Femicide (NSP-GBVF).

“We are launching the Child Protection campaign under the theme: ‘Working together in ending violence against children,’ as part of this integrated approach. Pillar 7 is a critical element that will help us build a justice system that protects and supports our children,” Cekiso added.

The month of May also comes on the heels of a significant continental milestone. In April, children from across Africa convened in Johannesburg to discuss their issues and aspirations. Their deliberations echoed the same calls for stronger protection mechanisms, inclusive policies, and accountability from states.

“As we commemorate Child Protection Month, we must confront the reality that violence against children remains pervasive in our communities. Our commitments, both national and international, demand urgent and sustained action. The safety and well-being of our children cannot wait,” Cekiso stressed.

With the eyes of the nation and the world on South Africa, this year’s Child Protection Month serves as both a solemn reminder of the work still to be done and a rallying call for collective responsibility in safeguarding the country’s most vulnerable citizens.