MINISTER TOLASHE URGES UNIFIED EFFORT TO STRENGTHEN SOCIAL SERVICE WORKFORCE

By Precious Mupenzi

• Urgent Workshop for Social Service Workforce: Minister of Social Development, Ms. Sisisi Tolashe, MP, opened a critical workshop at the Birchwood Hotel, aimed at implementing the government’s newly approved strategy for the employment of social service professionals. The workshop, themed around enhancing collaboration with the private and business sectors, highlights the pressing need for unified efforts to address the increasing demand for social services in South Africa.
• Strategic Importance and Challenges: Minister Tolashe underscored the strategic importance of bolstering the social service workforce to meet constitutional and international commitments, addressing issues such as poverty, crime, and gender-based violence. She pointed out the sector’s current challenges, including fiscal constraints and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, which have exacerbated the need for more robust social service provision, especially in under-serviced and rural areas.
• Focus on Comprehensive Strategy and Collaboration: The government’s strategy, which covers planning, recruitment, deployment, development, and management of the social service workforce, aims to address the gap between the current number of professionals and the projected need of 55,000 by 2030. Minister Tolashe called for the commitment of all stakeholders, including community-based organisations and the private sector, to collaboratively implement the strategy and meet the National Development Plan’s Vision 2030 goals.

Minister of Social Development, Ms. Sisisi Tolashe, MP, delivered a powerful address today at the Birchwood Hotel and Conference Centre, marking the start of a vital workshop aimed at implementing the government’s newly approved strategy for the employment of social service professionals. The workshop, themed “Strengthening and expansion of collaboration on funding initiatives with private sector organisations and business sector,” underscored the urgent need for enhanced cross-sector collaboration to meet the growing demand for social services in South Africa.

In her opening remarks, Minister Tolashe highlighted the strategic significance of the workshop. “This timely sector workshop is designed to develop practical methods for implementing the strategy approved by Cabinet in February this year. At the heart of this strategy is the need to bolster the social service professions workforce, particularly in response to the increasing demand for social services nationwide,” she stated.

Minister Tolashe emphasised the critical role of social service professionals in upholding the nation’s constitutional and international commitments. “The social service professions are essential for fulfilling our constitutional duties and adhering to international treaties such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Convention on the Rights of the Child,” she said. “These professionals play a key role in tackling poverty, addressing social issues such as crime, substance abuse, teenage pregnancy, and gender-based violence.”

She also addressed the pressing challenges facing the sector. “Despite the pivotal roles played by social service professionals, we face difficulties in providing the necessary employment opportunities for many qualified individuals due to fiscal constraints and the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic,” Minister Tolashe noted. “The pandemic has highlighted the urgent need to strengthen our social service workforce, particularly in under-serviced and rural areas.”

Currently, the government employs 23,561 social service professionals, including social workers, auxiliary social workers, child and youth care workers, and community development practitioners. However, this number falls short of the 55,000 professionals projected to be needed by 2030, according to the National Development Plan (NDP). “The need for implementing this strategy is more pressing than ever,” she emphasised. “With only five years remaining to achieve the NDP’s Vision 2030, it is crucial that we accelerate our efforts.”

The strategy focuses on five key areas: planning, recruitment, deployment, development, and management of the social service workforce. Minister Tolashe expressed her satisfaction with the collaborative approach taken in developing the strategy, stating, “I am pleased that the strategy has been developed with the full participation of all key departments in the sector.”

She also acknowledged the role of community-based and civil society organisations. “The promotion of national social development is a collective responsibility,” she said. “Government alone cannot address all the needs, and we must engage with all partner organisations, including the private sector, to achieve the goals set out in the NDP.”

Minister Tolashe further urged all stakeholders to commit to the strategy’s implementation. “Just as the strategy for the employment of social service professionals is a product of sector and intersectoral collaboration, its successful implementation equally requires the commitment of everyone in this conference room and beyond,” she concluded. “We must agree on a clear implementation plan and the next key steps, including engagement with other sectors of our society.”