The Gauteng Department of Social Development (GDSD) has noted the tremendously misleading statement by the Democratic Alliance.
The GDSD Institutional Realignment Project (IRP) is premised on the newly approved Service Delivery Model of the Department, which is informed by the NDP Vision 2030, as well as the District Service Delivery Model recently approved by the National Government, all of which are critical policy positions adopted by the state to improve service delivery.
The IRP will progressively be implemented by the department to respond to challenges it has been faced with in the partnership model with NPOs which has led to delayed service delivery to communities that need the department’s services the most. The IRP will ensure the department can build state capacity and reduce “over-reliance” on NPOs on the constitutionally legislated mandates of the department.
The current partnership model with NPOs is unsustainable as more resources are allocated to NPOs at the expense of developed state capacity, while at the same time, donor funding for many NPOs has dried up. Moreover, service delivery by NPOs (in identified service areas) remains largely skewed along racial lines and in urbanized areas, and because of this fact service delivery does not often reach those who need them the most to the extent that is required for this department to ensure it assists all service users sufficiently.
It must be stated that it is not the first time the Department has taken over services from other parties, including NPOs. For instance, today GDSD has trained and registered over 150 social workers to provide adoption services free of charge. Currently, probation services, secure care services (for children in conflict with the law), and adoption services, to mention but a few, were services provided at a cost but today are provided using internal GDSD capacity. There is therefore no reason for the Department to continue to fund NPOs for these identified specific services currently being rendered internally or which GDSD has over time-built capacity to deliver on.
The MEC for Social Development Morakane Mosupyoe echoed the department’s position on the IRP, “at Social Development we contend the state should play a much larger role in the provision of social welfare services, including establishing effective partnerships with the private and community sectors. Gauteng and the country in its entirety need to confront the reality that social services, like health and education, are critical for improving social integration and human development.”
The MEC went on further to state, “the current model of shifting the burden of care, treatment & rehabilitation to the NPO sector must be reviewed. Complex social problems require professional interventions to deal with the symptoms and underlying causes of social pressures, most evident in schools, workplaces, and neighbourhoods that are plagued by gang warfare and households afflicted by violence, including the abuse of women and children. We also note there may be concerns regarding the implementation of the IRP ours is to ensure we closely monitor its progressive implementation so that service delivery is not affected.”
Over the years GDSD has provided scholarships for Social Workers, many of whom have been employed by the Department, creating additional capacity for the Department. Social Development is therefore engaging in this IRP to maximize the service delivery outputs based on the increased internal capacity the department has realized in recent times, hence the concept of reducing “over-reliance” on NPOs.
There is also a need to ensure that accountability is built into partnerships with the non-governmental sector, reliance on service level agreements has proven to be insufficient to ensure these partnerships deliver to the extent required. The state must ensure that nongovernmental service providers do not take advantage of vulnerable groups and that they provide the correct funded benefits.
Important to note, that NPOs in Gauteng Province will continue to play a critical role in identifying social problems, finding solutions, and even achieving social objectives in numerous areas that the Department cannot cover efficiently or at all, and GDSD will continue to fund such NPOs. However, this partnership is being reviewed to ensure that over time, as is the case in some instances, it does not border on NPOs replacing or serving as an alternative to the state in critical service delivery areas. Therefore, building state capacity to deliver constitutionally mandate services, while retaining critical identified partnerships with the NPO sector remains a priority for GDSD.
As a result, the funding of NPOs will no longer be general (for all services) but will be focused on critical service delivery areas where GDSD is not able to provide such internally. These critical areas for NPO funding will include amongst others, the provision of adequate funding for NPO-run residential care services for older persons and persons with disabilities, as well as other identified critical services such as programs responsive to Gender Based Violence and Femicide, the Homeless Programmes, community development to name a few.
Lastly, it must be stated that the Department has started to engage NPOs on these changes, and the initial consultations started during the week of the 6th and 7th of September 2022 where all funded NPOs were engaged amongst others, in funding preparations for 2023/24 Financial Year, Monitoring and Evaluation and Audit Outcomes, including the IRP. The Department will continue to engage NPOs directly on these matters, to address any concerns from the sector.
