Johannesburg – The Gauteng provincial government is on a blitz to reunify homeless people with their families, including providing some with IDs.
The blitz began on Wednesday in Westonaria where thousands of homeless people from various towns in the West Rand gathered at the Sports Complex to meet various officials from the Gauteng Department of Social Development; Home Affairs and Labour.
The plan was announced in May by Premier David Makhura when he urged business people and other interested parties to assist the homeless to survive the scourge of Covid-19 pandemic.
In his plan, he also detailed his government’s plan to provide the homeless with their social services needs and to reunite them with their families.
Now, Gauteng Social Development MEC, Dr Nomathemba Mokgethi, is leading the service delivery blitz in partnership with various government departments such as Home Affairs to ensure those who require birth certificates and identity documents receive them.
The Department of Health will assist with medical needs, and Non-Profit Organisations (NPOs) will provide skills and job readiness programmes.
“As a government, we have been committed to ensure that shelter services in Gauteng are delivered in ways that help people living on the streets to gain access to essential and basic social services that promote their dignity, respect diversity and ensure public value for funding,” Mokgethi said.
She added the government had already united 600 homeless people with their families through the intervention of provincial social workers.
According to Mokgethi, the plan was to ensure some of the elderly were placed in care centres for the elderly, while those who were able to work were provided with the necessary skills, through the department of labour.
Political Bureau