Alberton Child Welfare on the brink of closing its doors
Over a thousand families and about 700 children could be on the receiving end should Alberton Child Welfare close its doors due to lack funding.
Alberton Child Welfare has temporally closed its doors until they receive proper feedback from the Gauteng Department of Social Development regarding its funding.
At least 700 children in foster and institutional care, as well as over a thousand families, will be on the receiving end should the Alberton North entity completely close its doors.
Their primary goal is to remove and support children who need care and protection, placing them in safe environments. Limited resources continue to hinder them from providing social welfare services.
According to Anubha Mackerdhuj, director of Alberton Child Welfare, all NPOs in the province have been subjected to budget cuts.
“Many of the NGOs are receiving 50% or less budget cuts from the Department of Social Development. We as Alberton Child Welfare got information via the MEC at a meeting, where MEC Mbali Hlophe indicated that the premier had reprioritised certain issues. This meant certain aspects in respect of priorities needed to be taken into account,” she explained.
Mackerdhuj said they have now prioritised substance dependency, homelessness, sustainable living programmes and food security to be more of a priority in the region.
“The majority of the budget will go towards funding those programmes. We currently have social and social auxiliary work posts, five of each. Of the posts we’re going to be given less than 50% of the budget. If a social worker was subsidised previously for R15 000 for example, right now they’ll be subsidised for about R6 000,” she said.
As an NPO they experience major financial difficulties, as they serve the greater Alberton area and disadvantaged and vulnerable children and families.
Major knock
She reiterated that they provide services to children and ensure their safety and protection.
For the entity, cutting the budget would mean that their services would be hindered.
“We cannot function in any way and provide these services that we do provide right now to the community. It’s a major knock to our organisation as well as all other NPOs. I can’t understand how the government can prioritise certain aspects to the detriment of others,” Mackerdhuj said.
She said this creates lots of problems and their board of management will need to decide how they are going to deal with issues moving forward.
However, the department pointed out in a statement that the budget of R2.3b allocated to NPOs remains and that there is no cut to the budget.
“Residential care services to older persons, child and youth care centres and shelters for women and those with disabilities will remain funded accordingly. Succinctly, as per the legislative mandate, the services to the vulnerable will continue to be provided by both the department and NPOs,” stated the Gauteng Department of Social Development.
Speaking to the Alberton Record, the department urged organisations to urgently conclude the process of service-level agreement (SLA).
Should the community wish to make any donations towards the sustainability of Alberton Child Welfare, they may contact Anubha on 083 658 6176.
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