ENHANCED CHILD PROTECTION REGISTER EXPANDS REQUESTS TO SCREEN ZIMBABWE AND BOTSWANA NATIONALS

By Lumka Oliphant 

• The Department of Social Development (DSD) has made the Child Protection Register (CPR) more accessible to help safeguard children by allowing easier screening of individuals for suitability to work with children.
• The CPR records cases of abuse, maintains court findings, and lists individuals unsuitable for child-related work, with 12,596 names currently on the register and rising interest from employers screening individuals from neighbouring countries.
• DSD is focusing on strengthening international relations, particularly with Zimbabwe and Botswana, to better verify the suitability of prospective employees from these countries as migration trends increase.

The Department of Social Development (DSD) has improved the accessibility of its Child Protection Register (CPR), allowing South Africans to check whether individuals have been found to be unsuitable to work with children. As a result, the department is seeing an increase in employers requesting to screen prospective employees from neighbouring countries like Zimbabwe and Botswana, reflecting the effects of migration. While the numbers remain low, there is a growing awareness among South Africans about the register, prompting them to request screenings for prospective employees from other countries.

The CPR serves as a protective tool, documenting incidents of child abuse, maintaining records of convictions and children’s court findings, and listing individuals found unsuitable to work with children. The register comprises two parts: Part A documents abuse or neglect cases, tracks services provided to affected children, and identifies trends in abuse. Part B lists individuals unsuitable to work with children and restricts their access to environments where children are present, such as schools, early childhood development (ECD) centres, and even for taxi owners transporting children to school.

Currently, the register contains 12,596 names of individuals unsuitable to work with children, and has screened 115,570 prospective adoptive and foster parents, as well as 23,479 potential employees. There have been six enquiries for Zimbabwean nationals and two for Botswana nationals to date.

This trend underscores the need for the department to strengthen relations with neighbouring countries, as verifying the suitability of prospective employees from these countries becomes increasingly necessary. The DSD has already signed Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with Zimbabwe and Lesotho regarding “children on the move” and regularly holds meetings to manage children migrating between South Africa and these countries.

Ms. Neliswa Cekiso, Director of Child Protection, noted that the KwaZulu-Natal DSD has strengthened its relationship with Santaco, particularly regarding taxi owners who transport children. Cekiso also reminded department employees to screen their domestic workers.

Nkatane Matsomane, manager of the CPR at DSD, mentioned that the enhanced accessibility of the register is due to opening it up to more stakeholders and allowing public walk-ins at DSD offices to check the register. Since the Department of Basic Education gained access, 32,036 teachers have been screened, with 236 teachers found unsuitable to work with children. Matsomane expressed concern about private schools and ECDs, emphasising the need to compel them to screen their employees.