Durban — The Department of Social Development says as early as 2003, social work was declared a scarce skill and critical profession, and according to the National Development Plan, the country needs 55 000 social workers by 2030.
Currently, there are about 22 000 social workers employed in the public service.
The department said this on Wednesday in the backdrop of World Social Work Day, under this year’s theme: “Respecting Diversity Through Joint Social Action”.
Childline KZN agreed more social workers need to be employed. Its acting director, Adeshini Naicker, said creating a change in South Africa was a mammoth task and one that would take years and a huge task team to implement.
“A good starting point is for every school to have a full-time social worker and this includes primary school. Children need to be mentored from an early age, as well as have convenient access to social services,” she said.
Amraj Dursan, marketing officer at Aryan Benevolent Home (ABH) in Chatsworth, said Social Work Day is an important acknowledgement of the often unsung heroes working behind the scenes to ensure social cohesion among individuals within their communities.
“As the ABH itself is a microcosm of society, our social workers facilitate the adjustments to changes that need to be made by the children, elderly and women survivors of domestic violence who seek comfort in our care.
“Under the guidance of our social work team, all residents at the ABH are offered assistance in confronting the challenges they face, without fear or prejudice. Social workers play an important part in the ecosystem of care that has contributed to the longevity and legacy of the ABH for over 100 years,” Dursan said.
Social Development Minister Lindiwe Zulu said the month of March is set aside to recognise and highlight the contribution of social work professionals to the health and well-being of individuals, families and communities globally.
She said measures were already under way to address the deficit of social workers in the public sector, adding that the target for Priority 4 of the Medium-Term Strategic Framework was to increase the number of social service professionals to 31 744 at an estimated cost of R9 billion by 2030.
“The department maintains a database of unemployed social work graduates, used to capture details of social work professionals and link them with existing job opportunities.”
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