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Children at an ECD centre are given food.
The Gauteng Early Childhood Development (ECD) Forum is set to march to Premier Panyaza Lesufi’s office in Johannesburg on Thursday to raise concerns about the challenges faced in the sector.
In 2022, the governance of the ECD sector shifted from the Department of Social Development to the Department of Basic Education (DBE) in an effort to enhance outcomes for young children and the ECD workforce.
However, the DBE has been accused of poor communication and implementing changes that impact ECD staff without proper consultation.
It has also been accused of inadequate funding for registered centres for each child per day.
Founder of Lindokuhle Early Childhood Development Centre, Connie Mkhabela, says, “We demand recognition. We demand the allocation of the SLA’s that the ECDs have signed for. Because we signed for an allocation for the R24 per child a day, and that is not being practiced. A few ECDs only received that subsidy in the first quarter, in June and now there is nothing. Others did not receive. So we demand answers. We demand clarity because nothing was communicated.”
Full interview with Sisonke Early Childhood Development Forum Chairperson, Connie Mkhabela:
