Four months since women’s shelters around the Western Cape made a public appeal for emergency funding to keep their doors open the Western Cape Women’s Shelter Movement says nothing much has changed, and shelters are “living from hand to mouth”.
In December last year, 14 of the twenty shelters that form part of the Western Cape Women’s Shelter Movement faced imminent closure due to lack of funding while the rest only had funding for about two to three months.
The shelters are the Safehouse, Saartjie Baartman Centre, St Anne’s Homes, Philisa Abafazi Bethu, Carehaven, Sisters Incorporated, Athlone House of Strength, Aalwyn Place of Safety, Sizakuyenza, S-Cape, St Mary’s Home of Hope, Worcester House of Hope, United Sanctuary Against Abuse and St Clare’s Sanctuary.
Delene Roberts, chair of Western Cape Women’s Shelter Movement, says the shelters have managed to scrape by these past few months but adds that they are not out of the woods yet.
“None of the shelters have closed as individual shelters held fundraisers in order to prevent this. The Department of Social Development paid the quarterly subsidy (to compliant shelters) early January, but these funds were used to cover expenditure and the immediate needs of shelters and technically, the shelters are back where they were when the press release went out in December.”
Roberts says they are grateful to donors that have continued to support them.
“The shelters have been living from hand to mouth and yet expected to deliver the best quality services to the survivors of abuse. However, we are extremely grateful for the many donors that came to our rescue with donations in kind such as non-perishable goods. These donations have gone a long way.”
Joy Lange, Executive Director of St. Anne’s Homes in Woodstock, says they have been keeping the doors open and trying to stay afloat with the assistance of donors and the wider community.
“We don’t know what the future holds, whether with the new funding cycle from the Department of Social Development if we are going to receive an increase. We are almost trying to get used to this cycle, because government gives us a quarterly sum, but it is just not enough to cover everything.
“St. Anne’s has a funder, who has been contributing between R400 000- R450 000 per year. For 2023 the funder could only contribute R120 000. That deficit is largely felt. And it is the same principle for other funders as well.”
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Lange says their monthly expenses range between R200 000 and R300 000.
Lange says: “The plea is for the private sector to come to the party. Yes, the Department of Social Development (DSD) funds the salaries of the social auxiliary worker, and they give a contribution toward the house mothers salaries, however there are other key roles that make up the quality service delivery of any shelter. Like administrative staff, a financial person, so yes, there are contributions that one could use from the funds that the DSD gives, but it doesn’t fulfil a full salary for an admin person.”
She adds: “We are not even talking about child-minders. At St. Anne’s we have qualified Early Childhood Development (ECD) practitioners because we have a registered ECD programme on the premises. Yes, we get a contribution from the Provincial Department of Education toward our ECD programme, but that translates to R8 000 a month.
“We are getting used to the fact that closure of a shelter is just around the next month. So, we live day by day.”
Roberts says these play a critical role in society. “Many women have quoted “if it wasn’t for the shelter, I might not have been alive today”, therefore the services that shelters render are essential and much needed and yet we do not have enough beds in the province. Victims feel that we don’t want to help when we say we are full, but what can we do? How come during Covid shelters were considered essential services permitted and enforced to be open and serving with tighter restrictions?”
Roberts there’s various projects ways which people can offer support.
“We need your help to save the many victims and prevent them from becoming a femicide statistic. Adopt, create or sponsor a project to aid different periods during the seasons and timeframes of the year.”
Monique Mortlock-Malgas, media liaison officer for the Western Cape Social Development Department, says the department remains committed to ensuring victims of violence get the support and assistance they need.
“The budget allocation towards the Western Cape Department of Social Development’s Victim Empowerment Programme (VEP) has increased from R68,2 million in 2022/2023 to R76,8 million in 2023/2024.”
She says the department is also planning a 5% increase for all VEP organisations and expansion of services in hotspot areas.
“Over the next three years the Department will expand shelter services in the Victim Empowerment space and expand Khuseleka centres in the Overberg and Eden Karoo. Funding to current service providers will also be enhanced to ensure sustainability at these facilities.”
Anyone in need of assistance, like counselling, services can be accessed by visiting your nearest DSD office, or by contacting one of the funded NPO partners. Services can also be accessed by calling the Gender-Based Violence Command Centre on 0800 428 428.
- Visit helpformen.co.za for more information.
