SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT EVALUATES NPO’S WORK ON EPWP

By Sipho Ncube

• Gauteng’s Department of Social Development conducted a site visit at a development centre in Hammanskraal to ensure compliance and evaluate the impact of the Expanded Public Works Programme.
• The Perseverance Rural Development Centre provides psycho-social support, health testing services, and skills development programs to vulnerable children and youth in areas such as Marokolong, Ramotse, and Mandela Village.
• The Expanded Public Works Programme helps create work opportunities for unskilled and semi-skilled individuals.

The Gauteng Department of Social Development’s HIV/AIDS unit conducted a site visit to the Perseverance Rural Development Centre in Hammanskraal, in the north of the City of Tshwane, on 12 February 2025 to monitor and evaluate the impact of the Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP).

Perseverance Rural Development Centre, a non-profit organisation, provides psycho-social support, health testing services, and skills development programs to vulnerable children and youth in areas such as Marokolong, Ramotse, and Mandela Village.

Social work manager Seipati Motlabane emphasised that the visit aimed to ensure compliance and assess the real impact of services on local communities.

Derrick Masimbi (27), an aspiring HIV/AIDS counsellor, expressed gratitude for the opportunity the centre provided. “This training has opened doors for me, and I encourage others to take advantage of such programmes,” he said.

Launched in 2004, the Expanded Public Works Programme is a government initiative addressing poverty and unemployment by creating work opportunities for unskilled and semi-skilled individuals.

It is aligned with the National Development Plan: Vision 2030 and the Growing Gauteng Together 2030 Strategy.

Through public social programmes, the department also supports care workers, social auxiliary workers, and home-based care workers, ensuring sustainable job creation within the sector.